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For seven blissful years we’ve enjoyed having steady garbage pick-up rates, and one of the lowest rates in the Seattle area. (See the rate chart below)
Unfortunately, our nice deal with Waste Management is expiring, and garbage haulers are pushing on us hard to get the rates back up to market levels.
Renton has responded by looking at ways we might mitigate the rate increases through increased recycling efforts, and less frequent pick-up service of some waste streams. All of us on council are concerned about rates; but we have had a variety of different thoughts about how to deal with them.There are many facets to the debate (rates, frequency, fairness, safety, health issues, environmental issues), and many of us on council have revealed a fair amount of passion on the issue at one time or another.
After much debate, brainstorming, and gnashing of teeth, we are very close to reaching a decision point.
The Renton Reporter ran a story on the topic in the last edition. Click here for the article.
As the story explains, “The new rates will vary among residences. But for the largest single residential category – known as one-can service – the monthly rate will go from $13.44 a month to $18.41 a month.”
It’s important to understand that along with this 5 dollar rate increase, your single-can service is only going to get picked up once every two weeks. To avoid a home trash crisis (and be a good steward), you will need to put all of your organic trash into the “expanded yard waste” toter that will be supplied to you. I call it expanded, because it will now be the correct place to put food scraps, and cardboard and paper that is tainted by food. So your spoiled food, paper plates, cheesy pizza boxes, your Chinese food boxes, and your paper meat packaging would go in this toter (along with your yard clippings, old flowers, and other greenery).
A third toter will be supplied for collecting all the remainder of your recycling (clean paper, cardboard, cans, bottles, plastics), and in a simplification, none of this will have to be sorted any more.
All of this recycling will not leave too much stuff that will have to go into the traditional garbage stream. Hence, city experts believe this should make it possible for most single can homes to move to the 35 gallon toter that is picked up every two weeks.
The five dollar increase will be noticeable however, and there appears to be nothing we can do about it. If you look at the chart below, you can see this still keeps us much cheaper than many other jurisdictions.
Unfortunately, the rates are also going up for two-can users, commercial users, and min-can users. Citizens who are mini-can users will see a large percentage increase in their bill under the contract, as the cost for their service is just not much different than the cost of the next-size-up toter. We could think about subsidizing this further, but then it shifts costs upward on the other users who are already feeling a pinch.
Lastly, we had to decide between a seven year fixed-rate contract at an even higher rate, or to agree to a formula for rate increases over the life of the contract. (We had this choice seven years ago, and chose the seven-year fixed-rate.)
This time, the fixed rate is much too high, because it is so speculative given inflation and oil-price worries. The garbage haulers want a lot of money up front if they are going to take all the risk in future years, given the state of the economy.
City staff have tried to mitigate future rate increases, by creating some ways we can keep the rates down. One way we can do this is by diverting our waste streams into recycling. The new contract, the hauler wil actually set our rates by the actual tonnage transported to the transfer station. If this tonnage is reduced, our year-over-year rates will be credited by this savings. The numbers get complicated, but the bottom line is that if you put one hundred pounds of rubbish into recycling instead of the trash, that 100 pounds of rubbish will save Renton rate-payers about (100 pounds) X 75 (dollars/ton) /(2000 pounds/ton) = $3.75. This $3.75, along with the savings from all the other households, could be significant in helping off-set inflationary costs of fuel and labor in our contract…and will help us minimize future-year rate increases.
There are no perfect answers, and I’m sorry we have to see a rate increase, but there are a few pieces of good news. Everyone will get wheeled toters form Waste Management, with attached lids, which will make your cans and neighborhood more orderly. And the extra recycling, which is included in the cost of the program, is the environmentally sound thing to do.
As always, please feel free to leave your comments.
Click here for Seattle Times story about local garbage rates
Click here to see how some local families reduced their garbage and increased their recycling.
Click here to see the final report from the garbage pilot program conducted last spring.
Garbage pickup
Randy, why does a citizen have to read your web page to learn the reason why Renton is doing something. Shouldn’t that be coming from the City or am I just unrealistic?
Re: Garbage pickup
Go to http://www.rentonwa.gov
Hmm…
I can pay all this money to get a pickup every two weeks….
Or, I can just bag everything into 3 Mil heavy duty bags and make a run to the transfer station every three months for $15 and save myself about $50 every three months – or about $200 per year.
It’s almost tempting to do it yourself.
…..
The reason that we’re in this mess is that Waste Management is almost a monopoly. Don’t bother competing with Waste Management – they’ve bought up many mob connected companies and it’s not worth the personal risk.
http://www.ejnet.org/rachel/rhwn040.htm
Re: Hmm…
Only problem is that you’re pretty much forced to buy into the garbage program that cities offer. I think people have tried to do that in the past and failed. It’s mostly a health issue — if given the option, people would leave bags of garbage in their yard for months on end, attracting all manner of vermin.
Re: Hmm…
You might very well want to do that and would follow through, but think of rental houses, elderly, etc. I could see the mounds of garbage piling up.
Re: Hmm…
It’s not just a health issue, but it’s City code: you cannot “opt out” of garbage service. Even if you don’t use it; you have to pay for it.
Wow, the Renton Reporter is still in existence? I haven’t seen one in around 2 or 3 weeks. For the “official newspaper” of the city, that’s pathetic.
I certainly welcome better trash service in Renton. I have family in Bellevue — they have a tiny garbage can which is almost never full, because the recycling program is so well structured. Here, it took a call to the City to get recycling picked up on a regular basis.
I’ve been underwhelmed with Waste Management — you guys should seriously look at other companies.
My household of two will be just fine with the every-other-week trash pickup, and as Ben said, it’s not such a big deal to go to the transfer station if things get out of hand. However, I imagine the new schedule will be a much bigger issue for large families, who might have to pay for a second container now. But who knows, maybe people really will take this opportunity to recycle their food waste and other items that they previously threw out. I find it challenging (and kind of nasty) to save all the kitchen waste in a container, then walk it out to the yard waste bin, but I’m looking for a little countertop container for that purpose (they have some with filters for odors).
The reality is, the Cedar Hills landfill is going to reach capacity some day, and our trash will be shipped outside the county at that point. That’s going to be very expensive — far more expensive than a $5 a month increase. So, just from a fiscal perspective, it’s in everyone’s interest to reduce their household waste right now. I think the City is providing a good opportunity to make that happen with this new plan, and I’m excited about the single container for recyclables.
My biggest concern is that seniors on fixed incomes — and especially those with the current mini can service — will be unduly impacted by this new rate structure. I know at least one of my neighbors will be, and I’m not exaggerating. I understand that the City offers a rebate program for seniors, but I’d really like to see such customers’ service directly subsidized so that their out of pocket expenses are minimized, and so that they don’t have to wait for a handout. Personally, this bleeding heart wouldn’t have a problem paying an additional three or four dollars a month to help out those on fixed incomes, but I can only imagine the objections such a progressive rate structure would generate. Sigh.
>>Personally, this bleeding heart wouldn’t have a problem paying an additional three or four dollars a month to help out those on fixed incomes, but I can only imagine the objections such a progressive rate structure would generate.
Here’s a logical objection:
There are all sorts of noble causes there that cry out for a few dollars here and there, but at some point those extra dollars drag people who are just barely making it down into poverty. At that point, it’s not longer charity but a transfer payment from one desperate mouth to another.
I’ve actually seen someone sink down due to them needing about an extra $20 per week. It seems silly, but there it is.
That’s a good (and logical) point, Ben — there’s always a fine line between helping those in need, and placing an undue burden on others. I’ve been severely cash-challenged before (but still employed), and yes, another $20 in expenses a week would have made a big difference to me. But in this case, we’re talking about a few dollars a *month* from homeowners and businesses to help fund an essential service for people who are on absolutely fixed incomes and who’d be impacted the most by the rate increase. I’d draw the line at helping seniors and disabled people on truly fixed incomes who only have the small can service. It seems pretty unfair that people who generate very little trash will see such large rate increases.
Be carefull
While I agree that graduated taxes are a great idea – be careful about taking on fees, even if the cause is just. They really do add up, and the people that can’t work around them at the ones that are the ones that can’t really afford them.
Here’s a good example – there’s about $7 in fees tacked on to every phone line to help defray the cost of phone service to poor people, rural people and the deaf.
But I don’t pay those fees – I use an offshore VoIP provider for all of our business lines. Poor old Working class Joe who can barely keep his head above water of course has to pay them.
I don’t pay sales tax on a lot of our IT server equipment- it’s hosted in Oregon.
You get the idea….
Re: Be carefull
A few things Ben.
1st, where on God’s great earth do you find time to search the net for obscure pieces of information. Every other time you post something there is an off the wall link.
2nd, I have a large family (4 kids) and agree about the pickup time. We recycle as good as the next person and we still fill 2 30 gal cans. With a two week pick up well probably have to pay for an extra can.
3rd, I’ve been nickeled and dimmed to death. If I didn’t get a VA pension, I’d be in a world of hurt. My wife and made a commitment that she would stay home with the kids and not work. I’ve held on through 5 years of school (5th year to meet CPA requirements)two deployments to Iraq and I’m just starting to get my head above water. More fees will will make it more difficult.
Mark
I was a guinea pig
We live in a neighborhood that was a trial for this program. It seems to me we’ve been doing this for maybe as long as a year now, maybe only 6 months… I forget.
Despite my concerns when the program began, we’ve been able to cut back on the amount of refuse collected and most is yard waste or recycled now. I may consider going from a 2 can to a 1 can service.
How does this affect townhomes, where we currently have our own trash/recycle cans (rather than a communal dumpster) but no yard waste containers to put organic food waste into?
Great discussion everyone– and a few ideas of my own
Thanks for all the valuable and interesting comments. I always learn a lot from you folks.
I want to answer the question immediately above, and then share a few thoughts I have.
The townhouse question is a very good one. I will ask the solid waste staff to ensure that everyone gets a yard waste container when we go to the new system. I just hope the new container is not too big for you to park conveniently–A 96 gallon cart that is only handling kitchen scraps may be a challenge to stash in some yards, but that is the only problem I can anticipate. If parking a large cart is a problem, we can see if there is a way that waste management can deliver smaller yard carts…I have no idea if this is possible.
On to the ideas….
I have a household of six (seven originally, but now two kids out, one in-law in), so like Mark, we generate two cans of trash each week.
But I took a good look at it today, and I realized the bulk of our garbage can trash comes from our kitchen waste basket (a big 10 gallon stainless steel can). We take a bag out to the trash cans every night or two, and this is 80 percent of our traditional trash.
The breakthrough for me was realizing that if I lined this stainless steel can with paper instead of plastic, I can put almost everything in it that normally goes in it, but dump it into my yard waste toter instead of the trash can. It collects plate scrapings, paper cups and plates, food wrapper, nut shells, banana peels, grape stems, etc…but all of this can go in the yard waste. Hence, I won’t want that little plastic thing on my counter…I will want to use my 10 gallon can, with a paper liner, and empty it into the yard waste toter.
The waste can in my office is already actually a recycling receptacle, since virtually every piece of paper, mail, etc that flows through the office is recyclable. So when that is emptied, it will dump into the blue bin. I can throw my pop cans into it also.
Bedrooms are all going to have 3 gallon recycling cans instead of trash cans (which will accept paper, cans, bottles, metal, etc), with possible very small (1 gallon) receivers for non recycling (hygiene items).
Bathrooms might have traditional “trash receptacles,” but these don’t fill very fast at all.
To complete the system, I’ll put an additional recycling can and trash can in my kitchen/family room area, to handle the rest of the waste. Overall, I think the whole thing will be no less convenient than what I do now.
But here is the great part…
I think with this arrangement, I can keep the “trash” (non-recyclable, non-organic) to a very small amount. I’m actually tempted to even try the 35 gallon bin, which would be a factor-of-four reduction since it is collected only every other week. But since the trash is dry (free of food, banana peels, and other slime), if I can’t fit it all in every week, I can keep a 32 gallon can in my garage, and make an occasional trip to the transfer station.
This works for me since the kids are not in diapers any more…that was the most intense trash time of my life.
Anybody that hates the idea of mandatory service, and would like to be hauling their trash to the transfer station themselves, can request the mini-can service. This will still give you tons of capacity for recycling and kitchen waste for not much more than 11 bucks a month. Nothing stops you from then taking the rest of your trash to the transfer station yourself, as long as your neighbors don’t complain about the way you store it. Eleven bucks a month is not the same as free, but it is a fairly small price to pay to ensure that everyone in your neighborhood is keeping the gross stuff moving out of their house.
I hope some of these ideas are helpful.
Re: Great discussion everyone– and a few ideas of my own
Randy, I agree with your analysis. I think those that will feel the price increase the most are those that already had a minican and are good about recycling. And, honestly, those seem to be the ones most in favor of increased recycling “at whatever the cost.”
I’m currently a two garbage can, so if I get off my b*tt and actually start recycling, I can go from two can (currently approx $21 a month) to one can (approx $18 a month), so I’ll actually save under the new contract.
Impact may be bigger than everyone thinks
A point to realize.
It is easy to get swayed by the numbers here, especially since they are relatively small.
Please keep in mind the following. Based upon the example above with the $5 difference, this is a…………
274% increase
It really is. Do the math, increase the service charge by $5 and then double it for the SAME level of service currently supplied at $13.41. Then look at the numbers. This is not “just $5.” Which seems easier to swallow.
Now, think if every utility, service, supply were to increase 274% for a business over the year, much less your family.
Small businesses cannot continue to absorb these costs without passing on the increases to their customers (your families), reducing services (to your families), or reducing staffing (your families’ employment), or finding other cost savings (cheaper supplies, outsourced, foreign, cheaper components). Plus, businesses often do not have the option of having every other week pickup, whether it is a restaurant, store, dentist, accountant, or espresso stand.
My business pays $48.23 for weekly 96 Gallon Toter garbage and an additional $22 a month for weekly 96 Gallon Recycling Toter. That does not include Yard Waste. We cannot do every other week service, we are a dental office, our garbage would be out of control. We already recycle everything we can, but we just have a lot of waste which isn’t classified as “medical” but also isn’t recyclable.
This is a dilemma.
And
Yard Waste 96 Gallon Toter is about $27/month
Re: Impact may be bigger than everyone thinks
As someone else pointed out, the real problem here is that Waste Management has the City over a barrel, since they have a monopoly on trash collection. Then again, I’d imagine their cost of doing business has risen tremendously as fuel prices have skyrocketed and employee benefits have become more expensive. From what I understand, the City has done a very good job of negotiating down WM’s initial proposed rates, which were truly outrageous. In this case, I’m not sure there’s much more we can do as citizens, other than form a new trash collection company and build our own landfill at that 20+ acre site up for sale at The Landing. Who’s on board?
My mom mentioned that in CA, she pays a “senior rate” for trash/recycling. Randy, Is there a reason why the City provides refunds to seniors, rather than simply offering them a lower rate to begin with?
Renton Citizen Raises a Good Point (again)
Renton Citizen, you raise an interesting point about senior rates. Why don’t you e-mail the Utilities Committee Chair, Rich Zwicker, (rzwicker@ci.renton.wa.us) and give him your ideas and concerns? He can then ask staff to give the Utilities Committee a briefing on senior/disabled utilities/garbage rates and see where it goes.
And as far as the garbage contract–it’s a done deal. It was approved at Monday’s council meeting; so much of this debate is academic. However, the sharing of ideas about how to get the most out of the new services we’ll be receiving seems like a good idea!!
Re: Renton Citizen Raises a Good Point (again)
great idea, will do!
Re: Great discussion everyone– and a few ideas of my own
Thank you, Randy, for getting back to my question on townhomes! I am excited about the thought about having a yard waste container I can put compostables in! I would like it, though, if you did follow up with Waste Management about potentially issuing smaller carts–as we (like many townhome owners) don’t have much of a yard, and since the units are attached (so that if we DID store them on our patios, some owners would have to haul their containers through their houses or around the outside of their buildings), we pretty much have to store the containers in the garage. This could be a challenge with a 96 gallon container, especially when it holds so comparatively little. Like you, I can imagine that we will use it for things like pizza boxes, paper plates, etc., but I still can’t imagine that we’ll fill it up just with that (we don’t have pizza THAT often!) 🙂
Thank you for your prompt response and your great communication on this issue!
If everyone really wants to go “full circle” with the kitchen and yard waste, be sure to buy the Cedar Grove compost bags at most area garden supply stores. It’s made from the stuff in our yard waste containers. It’s works great as a soil amendment and a mulch, and it’s generally cheaper than the other brands. You can also have the mulch and many different soil blends delivered via dump truck to your yard. That’s what we did when we put in our vegetable garden.
P.S.: The waste is cooked for a long time during the composting process (and tested for pathogens and weed seeds afterwards), so even if you put disgusting things in your bin, they’re not going to make their way into someone’s garden. 🙂
DIY
Or… if you really want to have fun
Buy one of these:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92281
And remove the horrid safety funnel – wear eye protection and chip your own garden waste. Layer in kitchen waste if your have a compost bin that won’t allow rats.
Done right, your compost pile can get so warm, you can cook a potato in it! Wrap a baked potato in foil and leave it in the compost pile for a few hours – come back, and it’s cooked.
The Fixes their problem…
Cedar Grove compost used to kill gardens deader than agent orange, thankfully they fixed the problem. Long lasting herbicide was left in the compost and sold to consumers.
http://www.tilthproducers.org/tpqpdfs/60.pdf
Re: The Fixes their problem…
Glad the problem was dealt with! If it hadn’t been, I’d imagine not a whole lot would be growing in my garden right now.
I think it’s pretty funny that the WSDA pesticide compliance program manager’s name (in the PDF you provided the link to) was named Cliff Weed.
I’m actually quite looking forward to the non-sorting. It’s quite confusing (is cardboard considered newspaper?), especially seeing as all the apartments I’ve been living in just had a single recycling bin.
One request – send a nice, laminated sheet showing exactly what can be recycled, and what can be composted. I’ve seen various levels of quality in this area (Bellevue was the worst), and some odd ones. Like one that stated that envolopes were ok, as long as they don’t have glue. Hmmm.