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Commissioners Discuss Recycling, Hauler Territories

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By Carl  Orth | The Suncoast News

Published: February 12, 2008

Updated: 02/12/2008 02:09 pm

DADE CITY, Fla. - DADE CITY, Fla. - Pasco County commissioners discussed today exclusive territories for trash haulers and a mandatory blue-bag recycling program for urban areas instead of building a recycling facility.

During the discussion commissioners raised the possibility neighborhoods would no longer have several garbage trucks, from competing trash haulers, rumbling down their streets.

"I think that's ridiculous," Commissioner Michael Cox commented. Three trash haulers serve his neighborhood of 122 lots, he noted.

Pasco County commissioners said they prefer to leave it up to garbage collection companies to suggest the boundaries for the possible nine exclusive franchise areas.

Exclusive areas also might simplify ways to boost recycling among Pasco residents, commissioners theorized.

Haulers wanted nine territories defined, Commissioner Jack Mariano said.

At a January workshop, suggestions were made for only four exclusive territories. "The thing that got everybody upset was the four districts," Commissioner Pat Mulieri said.

Recycling options were more numerous – weekly instead of every other week, mandatory countywide or only in urban areas and blue bags or bins.

Mariano also recommended a simplified recycling plan that would be much less costly than a recycling sorting facility proposed at last month's workshop. Commissioners were told residents might have to pay an extra $2 to $4 on bills to help pay to build such a facility.

"I'm not ready to abandon the blue bags," Cox said .

Cox agreed with Mariano that replacing blue bags with solid plastic bins would boost participation in recycling.

Cox and others talked about creating a customer satisfaction index to give the county leverage over poorly performing haulers.

"It would allow us a little leverage over them to make sure they do a good job for our customers," Cox said.

Perhaps recycling bins could be set up in rural areas instead of trying to operate curbside pickup in remote areas, Mariano added.

Perhaps recycling collection stations could be added at fire stations, parks or recreation facilities in rural areas, Commission Chairman Ted Schrader suggested.

"I think we all like the word mandatory, but we have to look realistically at the demographics of the entire county," Commissioner Ann Hildebrand commented.

Urban areas along corridors of U.S. 19, Little Road and S.R. 54 might make sense for mandatory recycling, Hildebrand said.

One other option emerged when Mulieri asked if the county should take over the trash billing and collections. The county then would send checks to the haulers.

The city of Zephyrhills does it that way, Bruce Kennedy, Pasco's assistant county administrator for utilities, said.

A county billing system might give Pasco leverage over trash companies, Mariano said.

Kennedy said county billing might have to be incorporated into annual tax bills instead of monthly fees, but he will check into it.

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