CYPRESS : Council Sorts Out Curbside Recycling

Residents will soon be required to sort their trash as part of the curbside recycling program approved this week by the City Council.

After two public hearings, at which council members hashed over everything from costs to the size of the garbage cans, the council finally decided on the curbside plan.

“I think once it is implemented, people will enjoy it,” Councilwoman Cecilia L. Age said. Adopted by several other cities in Orange County, the plan requires residents to separate garbage into recyclable and non-recyclable items. Two 100-gallon containers are provided by the trash hauler and can be rolled out to the curb by residents and easily emptied into the trucks. The waste is picked up each week, while the recyclables are collected every two weeks.

Several residents expressed concerns about the containers, which they called ugly and unnecessary. “I am really concerned about this recycling thing, (and) I have been recycling for years,” Howard Cromer said. “Do we have an option that we don’t have that ugly thing in front of our houses?”

However, after watching a four-minute video of a trash truck picking up cans in another city, the council voted for the curbside plan.

The initial increase in residents’ bills is estimated at 65 cents per month. But this is expected to rise once the county increases its landfill fees and administrative costs are tacked on. The monthly increase could total about $1.50.

Jamie Herbon, recycling coordinator, told the council that she will know in June what the entire program will cost residents.

Under state law, the city must reduce the amount of trash it hauls to county landfills or face a stiff penalty.

The curbside program is expected to take about three months to get started. Briggeman Disposal Inc., which has a 10-year contract with the city, will carry out the plan.