Automated Trash Collection to Begin This Fall

As officials l with Waste Management, they expect the new automated program to begin by the fall, the Westwood Department of Public Works said this week.

The Westwood Board of Selectmen spoke in favor of the new contract at its meeting Monday night, but held off on a formal approval as members wished to review it more before the next meeting on April 23. 

The five-year contract will begin July 1 and run through June 30, 2017, with a 3.5 percent escalation rate provision. Costs of the contract are based on 4,607 households in Westwood. 

"The whole purpose of us changing the way we do trash is to make it neater, cleaner, it's economical for the town," Westwood DPW Director Vicki Quiram said. "And it's environmental to increase the recyling. It's a fabulous thing to do."

Costs

The cost of the new contract is estimated to be at a total of about $1.1 million, and the proposed cost includes new prevailing wage rates reflecting a 15-percent increase (about $4 per hour) over the former contract. 

There will be about $100,000 annual savings over what the town would see if it continued with the current service, according to the DPW. But It will take about six months from the time the town signs the contract to until the new equipment, including new trucks the new bins, are delivered. During that time the town will continue with it's previous service. 

As such, the DPW estimated that the cost of the Fiscal Year 2013 waste service will be about $50,000-$75,000 over what was originally budged for FY13, and the full savings of the new program are expected to kick in during subsequent years. 

Condominium complexes will not be included in the automated collection, as they use a commercial collection program, according to DPW Deputy Director Chris Gallagher. Dumpsters at the town's schools and municipal buildings will also be emptied under a separate, municipal account, which will cost approximately $100,000 annually. 

"There's going to be responsibility within each building and department to keep an eye on that," Gallagher said. 

The DPW has also incorporated a new clause in the contract to ensure that the town is not penalized if the amount of trash delievered to Wheelabrator is sufficiently reduced. Wheelabrator is the company at which the DPW delivers the town's trash annually.

New Trash & Recycling Bins

As part of the contract, Waste Management will provide each household with one 64-gallon wheeled bin for trash and one 96-gallon cart for single-stream recycling. The trash bins are all green and will be emptied weekly, while the recycling bins include a yellow top and will be emptied on a bi-weekly basis. 

Residents who feel they will have more trash than can fit in the 64-gallon barrells will have the chance to purchase overflow bags at local grocery stores. The bags are estimated to cost about $3 each. 

The DPW is looking to organize a collection day, during which residents can dispose of old containers hosted by Waste Management. The new carts will become the property of the town after the five-year contract ends. 

Residents will have the chance to purchase additional carts at an annual rate of $150. The town will then be charged by Waste Management for the service rate of those additional carts. 

"If anybody does have a problem, and the bins are too heavy for them, we can think about giving them a smaller bin," Quiram aid. "We're going to ask people to start out with the regular ones. In all these communities, where this has been implemented, there are very few instances where people have had to ask for smaller bins. The bins are a whole lot easier to push than they look."

Leaf collection, meanwhile, will continue as is, with about 10 collections per year. Bulky and white goods can be collected on an appointment basis through a fee-based program with Waste Managment.

Recycling

While recycling will be collected on a bi-weekly basis, the new contract allows for the town to move to a weekly recycling program with a 90-day notice, and would result in an increase of about $100,000.

As an added bonus, Westwood has qualified to receive a new Recycle Bank program through Waste Management free for two years with a value of $64,000. The town has been named as the state's representative in Waste Management's 50-State Challenge. 

Through the program, residents recycle their single-stream rescycling through the automated curbside collection. The weight collected is then divided amongst all households and then converted into RecycleBank points, which are then awarded to households who are members of the program. Resident can then use those points for rewards at local and national businesses. 

"It's a program by which people get rewarded for their recycling," Quiram said. "It's like a credit card program, where you get bonus points. The more you recycle, the more bonus points you can get. And it encourages people to recycle."

Public information

The DPW is currently working on ways to get more information to residents, including having a small information booth at Town Meeting on May 7, with the new bins on display. 

Moreover, the DPW plans to hold an information session 30 days prior to when the new program kicks in (expected to be this fall), and will hold an annual information session throughout the length of the contract. 

Quiram added that the DPW is working to get an Frequently Asked Questions forum set up on its website for residents to weigh in with concerns and input.

For more information, contact the Westwood Department of Public Works at dpw@townhall.westwood.ma.us.