Trash Pickup Rates May Rise to Fund Recycling

The Ventura City Council will decide Monday whether to raise trash collection rates to help pay for future recycling services for businesses across the city.

The proposed increase would boost commercial trash collection rates by 8.4%, residential bills by 3.2% and industrial rates by 2.6%. If approved, the new rates would take effect Thursday for commercial and industrial customers and on Sept. 1 for residential customers.

The average residential bill of $16.82 per month would rise to $17.36. The average commercial bill, $66.76 per month, would increase to $72.37, said Steve Chase, the city’s environmental coordinator. The delivery and drop-off costs for industrial customers would cost $3.50 extra, Chase said.

“It’s important that we reduce our dependency on landfills by recycling,” Chase said. “If people don’t want to see Weldon Canyon, they should recycle their brains out,” he added, referring to the landfill proposed near Ventura.

According to Chase, the increased rates are necessary to pay for new recycling services that the city will offer to all businesses beginning next week. Of the 7,451 businesses in Ventura, only about 600 recycle, he said.

The rate increases are necessary because recycling is more expensive than sending garbage to the landfill, and prices for recyclable goods have fallen, Chase said. The rate increases would also help pay for residents’ new plastic barrels that are compatible with semi-automatic garbage trucks, he said.

Chase said the city hopes to educate business owners about the financial benefits of recycling. Fewer pickup days and smaller trash bins will be needed if businesses begin recycling, he said. In the long run, that will save businesses money, Chase said.

In addition to paper, plastic bottles and aluminum, the city will offer recycling for magazines and junk mail, Chase said. Merchants will receive color-coded tags to put on bags full of recyclable material. The bags would be thrown in the trash bin along with non-recyclable garbage and separated later, he said.

Overall, Ventura residents and businesses recycle about 15% of their garbage, city officials estimate. A state law requires that all California cities and counties reduce the amount of trash sent to landfills 25% by 1995 and 50% by 2000.

“The state deadlines are looming. We have to work our tails off to meet those requirements,” Chase said, noting that cities face fines of up to $10,000 a day if they do not comply.

Chase said residents have been doing a good job recycling, but business owners need to join in. The city plans to eventually impose a rate structure that would penalize companies that don’t recycle, he said.

Reaction from the business community has been mixed. Business owners say they don’t want a rate increase, but they agree on the need for recycling.

“I don’t think anybody likes an increase,” said Jim Barroca, executive director for the Chamber of Commerce. “We need to recycle, but it may raise the cost of doing business. It can be a major inconvenience for businesses.”

Sally Jannone, part-owner of a printing company on McGrath Street, said her business has been recycling for two years now.

“I’m upset about any increase I get,” she said, “but if that’s what it takes to better the environment, there isn’t much that business owners can do.”

Bruce Sharp, who owns a pharmacy on East Main Street, said he isn’t looking forward to paying higher bills. “On the other hand,” he said, “I’m in favor of things that will save the environment. I don’t think I’d make a big fuss about it.”