Park View, D.C.

Typical trash and recycling cans found in Ward 1.

Over the weekend, the Washington Post reported that Mayor Gray’s plan to replace the trash and recycling cans in 2014 is in trouble.  The problem, it seems, is that the D.C. Council objects to the money-shifting strategy Gray has proposed to pay for the program that would impact about 75,000 District households. To pay for this, Gray proposed to draw from funds previously budgeted for the District’s retiree health-care fund, and this is something that concerns council Chairman Phil Mendelson. The garbage-can plan transfer involves $9 million.

I certainly hope the council and mayor can find a solution for funding new trash cans. Currently, resident are required to pay a fee for replacement cans. The fee is $62.50 for a Supercan or $45 for a 32-gallon trash can or recycling can. Senior citizens, age 60 and older, are able to pay $30 for a Supercan, or $20 for the 32-gallon trash cans and $20 for the blue recycling cans that are used citywide.  For trash cans that can be repaired, the Department of Public Works will replace for free broken and/or missing wheels, tops and lift bars for 96-gallon Supercans.

While well maintained trash cans may not strike some as an important issue, in the fight to keep alleys clean and rodent free, they are essential. Improperly disposed of trash supplies food to rats and other wild animals which, in turn, contribute to greater health risks to the community.

This entry was posted on December 16, 2013 at 1:01 am and is filed under City services, DPW. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments.

Tags: City services, rats, trash