El Cerrito Increases Green Waste Pick-ups

El Cerrito will increase the amount of green waste it will pick up from businesses and homes under new recycling policies and fees approved unanimously by the City Council Monday night.

The new policy, effective Jan. 1, will offer pick-up of green waste mulitple times a week from businesses and apartment buildings of more than four units. The fee would depend on how many times a week and whether the customer uses a 35-gallon can or a 64-gallon can. Three pick-ups a week, for example, would cost a monthly rate of $75.66 for a 35-gallon can and $146.40 for a 64-gallon can.

Single-family homes and multifamily residential buildings of four or fewer units would be offered the option of having additional green waste cans to be picked up once a week. The monthly rate would be $50.44 for two 35-gallon green-waste containers or $97.60 for two 64-gallon containers.

The increased green waste pick-ups for commercial customers follows passage of a new state law, AB 341, requiring businesses to recycle if they generate more than four cubic yards of solid waste per week.

City Environmental Analyst Garth Schultz told the council that it's more economical for businesses to recycle their waste instead of putting it in the garbage. Rates cited in a city staff report for the council show the garbage rate for a 64-gallon bin, for example, is 53 percent greater than the green-waste rate for the same-sized container. Food scraps and food-stained paper products also can be placed in green-waste cans.

Several council members said they were excited by the new policy.

"I'm also very excited about this program," said Councilwoman Janet Abelson. "I think this will help us in our Climate Action Plan. That's what I hope."

Schultz responded that getting food waste and other waste out of landfills and into the recycling stream "is a major way to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.

In related action, the council also approved slightly increased rates for pick-up of bulk refuse from commercial customers. The monthly rate for one cubic yard of bulk-refuse pick-up would rise by $5.55, from this year's rate of $208.76 to a new rate next year of $214.31, according to the staff report presented to the council.

Collection and billing for El Cerrito garbage and green waste is handled by East Bay Sanitary under contract with the city.

The staff report to the council is attached to this article.