Talking trash: Changes to Staunton’s refuse and recycling programs on the way

STAUNTON — On Friday morning, just like every other morning, four dump trucks rolled out of Staunton’s public works facilities on Craigmont Road to make their way along their designated routes, picking up and loading upwards of 45 tons of trash collectively each day.

This particular morning, it was cold and rainy, a day better spent cozily tucked under a blanket with a mug of hot tea. But rain or shine, employees of the public works departments are out and about, collecting trash. That’s not the issue.

The issue is that every day when those trucks roll off the lot, workers have no idea how much trash they’re going to be dealing with that day.

“It’s a real business problem for us when everyone’s paying a flat fee but they can throw away as much as they want,” said director of public works Jeff Johnston.

That is one of a number of problems that Johnston hopes to solve with a new trash collection program in Staunton that he hopes will incentivize residents to throw away less trash and update the city to reflect industry standards around the world. It won’t be the only change in Staunton’s public works framework, as the department is also working on transitioning the city’s centralized recycling center from Gypsy Hill Park to the public works facilities.

There’s plenty to get through, so let’s take it from the top.

What changes are coming to Staunton’s trash collection?

First off, Staunton will issue standardized trash cans to every customer in the city and will match that with a change to their rate structure for trash. Rather than the current system where residents pay a flat fee and can throw away as much as they want, Staunton will operate on what’s called “pay as you throw” pricing in the garbage industry. Rates will be tied to the size and number of trash receptacles that residents opt for in their homes. There will be still be separate rate structures for residential and commercial uses.

That means that residents and businesses will have to make a decision about which options will best serve them. There’s still some time until those decisions are made, as Johnston pointed out that there were still quite a few steps until the new program will be up and running. Part of that process will be holding public forums for residents to ask questions about the new system, and provide input that could become part of the new policy.

“I’ll be the first to admit there’s a lot of ‘What about this? What about that?’” Johnston said, but he said those questions would be important to help put together the eventual new trash collection policy.

“I’ve got my own list of things, and I know once we start talking to the public on a regular basis, we’ll continue to add to those,” he said.

What about the recycling center?

The recycling center will relocate to the public works facilities on Craigmont Road in July when they must vacate Gypsy Hill Park for the Happy Birthday America celebration. As part of that move, some procedures may change, but Johnston is optimistic that moving will allow for some expansion of the recycling services offered by the city.

As a whole, the recycling program continues to grow. Johnston said that when he asked around prior to the move from curbside to the centralized facility model, he was told to expect about half of the current volume that the city took in. The city is currently running about 75-90% of their curbside volume at the centralized facility.

Those numbers include a large increase in cardboard recycling, as well as a hefty volume of glass. The center is also pulling in slightly less aluminum than when the program was curbside, but not a significant amount less. The kicker in all of this the current recycling landscape is not a money maker for the city. The more volume that comes in, the greater the cost, but Johnston isn’t overly worried about that.

“There’s nothing wrong with providing a service that’s popular. It’s a happy problem to have,” he said.

Okay, so we know what’s happening, but why?

Each program has its own reasons for the transition, so let’s break each one down.

Trash collection

The two major underlying factors for the change lie in equity and enforcement.

On the equity side, the obvious factor is the standardized cans being issued across the city. That signifies that every home and business will be accounted for in the new program with their own specific needs.

“Every customer in town in every neighborhood... on every street in town will have the same trash can and will have the same opportunity to participate in the refuse program,” Johnston said.

What that also represents is an effort from Johnston to get Staunton residents to throw out less trash. He recognized that there isn’t a whole lot of difference of work between going to pick up a large can against picking up a smaller can, but said, “I do want to provide an incentive for Staunton residents to throw away less.”

Staunton is a part owner of the local landfill, and according to Johnston, the city has a vested interest in filling up the landfill as slowly as possible.

The standardization will help the city balance routes for dump trucks and give the city a better idea of how to be efficient with their pickup. It will also help enforcement of the city’s trash policy.

“Right now, with everyone doing their own thing, some people putting out cans, some people putting out bags, it’s very difficult for us to enforce any policy,” Johnston said. With standardized cans, not only will enforcement of policy be simpler, but it will be easier for residents and city employees to be able to wrap their heads around the policy.

The standardized can system is also considered industry standard, as Waynesboro instituted their policy in 1972. Harrisonburg changed their program more recently, and has been helping Staunton to work through some of the details.

Johnston is hoping that above all else, residents will notice that the streets of the city will look better with uniform trash cans.

Centralized recycling center

By Johnston's own admission, the centralized recycling center is not the best neighbor for Gyspy Hill Park. The set-up takes up valuable footprint that the park needs, and two to three times a year, public works has to vacate the park for an event, disrupting their program.

Along with not being a great place for the city's recycling set-up, Johnston also pointed to a number of lessons the city learned about the recycling program throughout its first two years. Many of the changes that Johnston wants to implement can't happen at the park, and relocating to the public works facilities will allow for those changes.

Some of those changes include expanded hours and better traffic flow, along with a fence and locked gate around the facility to keep outsiders from contaminating the recyclables.

While there may be some concerns about the new location of the recycling center, Johnston believes the change is a necessary one to continue progressing the program.

“I’ll be the first to admit that our compound here is not as centrally located as Gypsy Hill Park, but I’ll also tell you it’s not that inconvenient and I think folks will be pleased with what they see," Johnston said.

When is all of this happening?

As mentioned above, the recycling center will move to its new location at the Staunton Public Works facilities in July, but the trash collection changes are more up in the air. Johnston said that he would love to have the new system up and running in this calendar year, but he won't rush the process. Part of the struggle includes continued supply chain issues, which could delay procuring the estimated 10,000 new trash cans for the city.

For now, the department is focused on public outreach and finding the path to get from where the city currently is to where public works wants to go. That means dealing with the unique issues that only a city like Staunton can provide.

“I have no doubt, somewhere in our fair city, there’s a place where our standardized can isn’t going to work and we’re going to have to come up with a solution," Johnston said. Figuring out the solutions for those areas and coming up with a policy that best serves the residents is part of the larger process, and Johnston has learned to not rely on his expectations and research.

“I’ve learned my lesson from recycling. I’m taking my expectations with an enormous grain of salt and being very open to the fact that there are lessons I will only learn as we go through this process," Johnston said.

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—Akhil Ganesh is the Government Reporter at The News Leader. You can contact him at aganesh@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @akhildoesthings.

This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Staunton preparing for changes in recycling and trash programs