At the last Selectmen's Meeting, the Board heard a presentation on a subject that has the topic of conversation many times over the last several years, the pros and cons of whether or not to adopt a Pay As You Throw trash service in the community.
According to the Department of Environmental Protection:
Also known as unit-based or variable-rate pricing, Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) is a system in which residents pay for each unit of waste discarded rather than paying a fixed fee per residential household. It is equivalent to putting a price tag on each container of trash that is placed at the curb or taken to the landfill or transfer station for disposal. As residents pay directly for waste disposal services, they have a financial incentive to reduce their waste through recycling, composting, and source reduction.
PAYT provides residents an opportunity to save money on their trash bills and promotes:
Fairness. Residents pay only for the amount of trash they generate. Households generating less trash pay less than households that generate more.
Increased Recycling, Composting and Waste Reduction. As residents come to understand that trash disposal costs more than recycling, they may be more likely to recycle and compost more and throw away less. Implementation of a PAYT program, in conjunction with a curbside recycling program, can increase a community's recycling rate between 20 and 27 percent. In addition, PAYT has shown to decrease a community's residential trash generation rate.
Improved Environmental Quality. By diverting waste from disposal, PAYT programs extend the life of landfills, decrease air pollution from trash incinerators, and reduce the need for new disposal facilities. As communities turn to reuse, recycling, and composting, natural resources, such as land, air, and water, are protected and preserved.
The presentation was part of a grant to the Town from the DEP at the suggestion of our new Solid Waste Advisory Team (SWAT). The Town is not proposing a PAYT Program for West Boylston at this point. Indeed, there are other options that the Town could adopt first, such as a mandatory recycling program designed to increase the amount of recycling and therefore decreasing the tons of trash the Town is required to pay to dispose of. The Selectmen are considering all options to reduce the Town's expenses and we seek the citizen's input on these matter.
If you are interested in the PowerPoint presentation made by Irene Congdon of the DEP for the Selectmen, I have attached it to this blog entry.
Leon A. Gaumond Jr.
Town Administrator
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