by Emily Canning-Dean
Reporter
Bedford -- The city is considering a pilot program which could eventually change the way residents take out the garbage.
At a March 17 work session, Service Director Clint Bellar presented a proposal to Council where residents on some of the city's main roads would receive garbage bins.
For the pilot program, about 300 bins would be provided free of charge from Waste Management, which collects the city's trash. Residents would keep the bins behind their houses or in their garages, then wheel them to the curb the night before refuse collection.
Waste Management would collect items only inside the cans and bins.
Bellar said it isn't determined which residents would receive the bins yet.
"There would be a 96-gallon bin for garbage and a 64-gallon can for recycled items," Bellar said. "The bins are on wheels and can be pushed out to the curb instead of dragging heavy bags."
Bellar said residents can put any recycleable material in the recycleables bins and would not have to separate the items into glass, paper and plastic like they must do now.
Because residents would have room for only 96 gallons in the trash bin, Bellar said he hopes it would encourage them to recycle more, which would save the city money in landfill costs.
Bellar said the city pays $38 per ton in landfill costs and collects nearly 5,000 tons per year. He said the city does not pay a fee for recycled items.
Beth Schmucker, spokesperson for Waste Management, said the bins will assist in keeping up the aesthetics of the neighborhood.
"It's a beautification tool," Schmucker said. "This way there aren't bags of trash laying around. They are contained in the bins."
Ward 6 Councilor Don Saunders said trash on the treelawns has been a problem.
"A lot of residents have complained to me about all of the trash on the treelawns," he said. "If there are high winds at night, the trash bags could have blown down the street by morning."
Bellar added, "When it rains on the trash bags, it makes them heavier and the city pays for refuse collection by weight.
"If the trash bags were inside the bins, which have lids, they would stay dry and we wouldn't pay the extra cost for all of the water."
Before officials would consider a citywide program, Bellar said they would need to gather some more data.
"We would need to find out how much it would cost to purchase bins for everyone and how much we would save from recycling," Bellar said.
"The one drawback is that it would cost us $100 per household if we ended up purchasing them for the entire city," Saunders said.
"That would be close to $500,000. I think we will probably try the test program, though," he said.
Bellar said the pilot program could begin sometime this summer if Council decides to implement it.
E-mail: ecanning@recordpub.com
Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3166