Rates for Commercial Green Waste Before Council

To help accommodate a new state law requiring businesses to recycle, the El Cerrito City Council tonight, Monday, will consider setting new rates for multiple weekly pick-up of green waste from commercial customers, including apartment buildings.

The agenda item also includes rates for an optional second green-waste container for residential customers.

The state law, AB 341, signed by Gov. Jerry Brown on Oct. 5, requires businesses that generate more than four cubic yards of commercial waste to subscribe to recycling services as of July 1 next year.

A preliminary analysis by the city's Environmental Services Department found that about 80 such businesses operate in the city and that approximately 37 percent of them do not currently participate the city's recycling program, according to a staff report prepared for tonight's meeting. A copy of the report is attached to this article.

The billing and collection of garbage and green waste in El Cerrito is conducted by East Bay Sanitary under contract with the city, and rates are subject to City Council approval.

Under the proposal before the council, the monthly rates for green-waste pick-up for 2012 would vary according to the number of pick-ups per week. Commercial customers, including apartment buildings of more than four units, that have  three pick-ups per week, for example, would pay $75.66 for 35-gallon can and $146.40 for 64-gallon can.

A single-family home, or apartment building less than five units, would pay $50.44 monthly for two 35-gallon green-waste containers or $97.60 for two 64-gallon containers. Pick-ups would continue to be once a week.

A full schedule of proposed rates can be found in the attached staff report.

Also attached to this article in the agenda for tonight's council meeting, which begins at 7:30 p.m.