Last Chance to Opt for Smaller Trash Cart

If one of the new 65-gallon carts for trash and recycling that will be delivered to all Newport residents is too big for your property, now is the time to fill out an alternate cart request form and get a smaller, 35-gallon cart set.

The deadline for the form is July 25. You can get it at the city's Clean City Web site or calling 401-845-5613.

"Because of the narrow passageways in between houses, small storage areas for trash and recycling, and residents who don’t produce a lot of material, the City created the Alternate Cart Request Form," the city's Clean City Coordinator said in a release.

The new contract is expected to save Newport more than $1.5 million per year, not counting the $950,000 fee to deliver carts to all residents.

The City Council voted 5-1 to authorize the new contract in April after exploring several scenarios that were presented to the public in an effort to solicit feedback.

According to figures released by the city earlier this year, the total cost for the contract over the five year term would be about $6.7 million.

Advocates for cart-based collection tout the bins' effectiveness at keeping rodents at bay thanks to attached lids that simultaneously prevent litter caused by wind and scavengers. 

Underlying any new initiative is a desire on the part of city officials to boost recycling rates. Cities and towns across Rhode Island are trying to meet  the 35 percent recycling rate goal set by the state. The idea is to not only increase recycling rates and reduce the amount of trash that ends up in the Central Landfill in Johnston, but also to save money. The higher the city’s recycling rate, the lower the tipping fee, or rate that a community pays to dispose of trash.

Last year, the city had a recycling rate of 23.5 percent – the highest it ever seen, but that’s far from the 35 percent goal – and well below the 25- to 29 percent it must meet to start getting incentive discounts on the tipping rate.

The contract is part of a combined service bid between the city and the town of Middletown but no bidder responded to the combined bid proposal, former City Manager Jane Howington said before the City Council vote. As a result, Newport negotiated the terms of the contract with Waste Management individually.

The contract will run from July 1 of this year to June 30 of 2019.