‘Pay As You Throw’: New Pricing For Garbage Could Be Coming To More Cities And Towns
(Patrick Skahill/Connecticut Public Radio)
Cities and towns across Connecticut are applying for millions of dollars in state aid to help them reduce the amount of trash residents put out on the curb. The push for funding comes as price pressures for waste disposal continue to mount, spurred by the imminent closure of a major trash plant in Hartford next year.
In response to what state and local leaders are calling a “waste crisis,” Gov. Ned Lamont and the legislature recently authorized $5 million in grant funding to help selected cities and towns set up “pay as you throw” and food scrap collection programs.
“Pay as you throw” (also called “unit-based pricing”) would make trash costs more like utility bills.
Instead of spreading out disposal costs via local taxes, residents pay based on the amount of garbage they throw away. Proponents of unit-based pricing say the system is more equitable. Smaller households would no longer subsidize bigger users who generate a lot more trash and recycling.