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Pasco Prods Trash Haulers On Territory Plan, Recycling

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By Carl  Orth | The Suncoast News

Published: December 2, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - County commissioners today were dumping on trash haulers for dragging their feet on changes to the way they operate Pasco officials first suggested during a workshop in February.

County officials left it up to the nine trash haulers who operate within Pasco to draw proposed boundaries for exclusive territories. Commissioners believe having only one waste hauler operating in an area would lead to greater efficiency.

Almost 10 months later, however, commissioners still haven't seen a plan from the haulers.
Right now, the garbage collectors have overlapping service areas. Three haulers serve his 122-lot neighborhood, Commissioner Michael Cox noted during today's County Commission meeting.

The county's patience is wearing thin with the trash firms for failing so far to have made the changes on its own, Commission Chairman Jack Mariano indicated after the meeting.

Other counties have weekly pickup of recyclable trash while Pasco requires it only every other week, Mariano mentioned during the meeting. Some counties even are recycling yard waste, he said.

Earlier this year, Mariano suggested the county explore creating a high-tech facility at which recyclable trash could be sorted from solid waste before it is burned at the Pasco County Resource Recovery Facility. The plant in rural northwestern Pasco burns garbage to produce electricity.

Sometimes, however, the resource recovery plant receives more waste than it can handle, forcing the county to ship it to another county for disposal. The county has estimated it would cost in the neighborhood of $150 million to expand the plant's capacity by adding a fourth boiler unit.

When they explored the feasiblity of the sorting facility, however, county staff members estimated trash bills might have to go up $2 to $4 a month to pay for it, so that concept was shelved.

At the county workshop in February, commissioners discussed implementing exclusive territories for trash haulers and a mandatory blue-bag recycling program for urban areas.

Exclusive areas could simplify the effort to boost recycling among Pasco residents, commissioners theorized at the workshop.

At the informal session Cox and others talked about creating a customer satisfaction index to give the county leverage over poorly performing haulers if the county is divided into exclusive franchise areas.

Limiting mandatory recycling to urban areas along the U.S. 19, Little Road and S.R. 54 corridors could make more sense than imposing it countywide, Commissioner Ann Hildebrand said in February.

To serve rural areas, recycling collection stations could be added at fire stations, parks or recreation facilities, Commissioner Ted Schrader suggested during the workshop.

Carl Orth can be reached at 727-815-1068 or corth@suncoastnews.com.

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