The National Waste & Recycling Association鈥檚 (NW&RA) New York City Chapter today issued concern about proposed legislation (Intro. 495) that would cap the percentage of the city鈥檚 waste that can be handled in any one community district.
听
鈥淲e urge the City Council to re-think this bill, which essentially amounts to a hidden tax. 听Every business in New York City will face increasing waste disposal costs if this bill passes,鈥� said David Biderman, NW&RA vice president of government affairs and regional manager of the NW&RA New York City Chapter. NW&RA estimates that, with passage of the legislation, waste disposal costs in the City would increase up to $100 million, with associated job losses in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx as a result of transfer stations being forced to reduce capacity.听
听
In addition to reduced capacity at waste handling facilities, the legislation would lead to a sharp increase in waste truck traffic in certain city neighborhoods, as waste would travel longer distances on already crowded city streets and highways to other transfer stations. 听The city鈥檚 recycling capacity would also be reduced, as many of the potentially affected facilities also handle recyclables. 鈥淭ransfer stations are a critical part of the city鈥檚 infrastructure,鈥� said Thomas N. Toscano, chairman of the NW&RA New York City Chapter and president and chief financial officer of Mr. T Carting Company, based in Glendale, NY. 听鈥淎s our industry and the Department of Sanitation pointed out in testimony to the City Council in 2013, these transfer stations were integral to cleanup after Superstorm Sandy. 听Many of these facilities will be forced to downsize or close, and the city will not have the necessary infrastructure in place in the case of another major storm or other crisis.鈥�
听
鈥淎lthough we oppose this legislation, we want to work with Council Member Antonio Reynoso, the bill鈥檚 other sponsors, and the De Blasio administration to implement effective measures that will reduce trash truck traffic while maintaining the critical infrastructure this city needs,鈥� Biderman said. 鈥淲e look forward to meeting with Councilmember Reynoso and officials from the New York City Department of Sanitation later this month to discuss how we best achieve this.鈥�
For more information, visit听