By Joan F. Simoneau, Community Reporter
Marlborough – The City Council's Operations and Oversight Committee will hold an informational meeting Tuesday, May 1, with Mayor Arthur Vigeant and representatives of the Department of Public Works (DPW) to acquire more details on the new containerized trash system that will be in the city starting in July.
The meeting, which was approved after a motion by council President Patricia Pope and Ward 3 Councilor Matt Elder at the council's April 23 meeting, is designed to help educate the council and the public on details of the new system in an effort to make a smooth transition. In a public statement to the residents of the city April 2, Thomas P. Temple, DPW assistant commissioner of operations, stated that his department, along with Allied Waste Services and Mass. Department of Environmental Protection, will conduct an outreach program and meet with representatives from local schools, senior groups and multi-family condo facilities.
“We plan to hold a question-and-answer night to discuss, explain and respond to questions they may have regarding the new program,” he said in the statement.
Several residents in the city are participating in Allied Waste's automated cart collection system trial program that started April 3. The goal of the pilot program is to promote the ease of usability as well as demonstrate that a resident who is recycling properly would not need more than the 64-gallon cart to handle his or her solid waste, according to a letter sent to participants from Allied Waste General Manager Kurt Lavery. Lavery noted that he also welcomed and encouraged candid comments.
For the trial program, trash and recycle demonstration carts were delivered to each household, and residents were asked to place regular household waste in the 64-gallon cart and non-sorted single-stream recycling in the larger 96-gallon cart. The conventional method of pick-up is being used during this trial program. Automated trucks will be used in July.
The new program includes separate yard waste collections that will occur for four consecutive weeks in the spring and four consecutive weeks in the fall. Temple said they are currently in progress through the week of May 14. This fall yard waste will be collected between Nov. 5 and Nov. 30.
“Please help the city reduce cost associated with solid waste disposal by increasing the amount of waste recycled,” said Temple in his statement. “Your recycling efforts will not only save the city of Marlborough money, but is the environmentally appropriate thing to do.”
