Town seeks payas you-throw grant
By Melissa Muntz Contributing Writer

Shrewsbury - The town of Shrewsbury will apply for a $40,000 grant to help kick off its pay-as-youthrow trash removal program expected to go into eff ect next year.

Bob Moore, a Department of Health employee, said the state Department of Environmental Protection grant would be used to purchase the bags needed to jumpstart the program.

"It's going to be a big adjustment period for residents and we want to make sure we have everything in place for next July," Moore said.

Shrewsbury residents are currently allowed eight bags of trash per week to be removed at no outof pocket cost to them; however, the town's recent budget problems have made paying for trash removal all but inevitable.

Moore said his office has received several phone calls inquiring about the fee-based program already and only expects to receive more as the July 2008 projected start date nears.

Moore said he's also expecting to hear some opposition from residents, but said the Finance Committee, Town Manager Daniel Morgado and Town Meeting have all given their support to the program.

Shrewsbury spends upwards of $2 million on trash removal, an amount that will not be completely absorbed by the new user fees.

"This is not a moneymaker for us," Moore said. "We're not expecting to make a profit, but just help cover most of the cost of rubbish removal."

The program is designed not only to raise funds toward the cost of garbage removal, but also to help increase awareness about recycling. The town does not pay for the removal of recycled items, and Moore said he's hoping a price tag on trash will cause people to take a second look at the recyclable items they may have previously put in their garbage baskets.

"Statistics from other towns with pay-as-you-throw have shown a significant reduction in the amount of rubbish out on the curb," Moore said.

The program is in the early stages of development, so Moore said he's not sure if any assistance will be made available to residents who may not be able to aff ord to pay for the specialized bags.

He said the town will spend the next year educating residents about the cost and logistics of the program as well as recycling dos and don'ts through informational mailings and public access television.