Image Credit: NYCHA.
On August 10, 2023, the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) announced the launch of a waste containerization pilot program for five NYCHA developments across South Brooklyn. The program, Clean Curbs for All, aims to reduce food sources from trash left out on curbs for pests like rats to consume and continue to grow.
The program is slated to begin in the first half of 2024 and will run for two years. NYCHA has entered into an agreement with WasteTech LLC to provide the services. WasteTech LLC will supply the pest-proof containers, leased trucks and hoist equipment. Residents will bring trash and recycling directly to the curbside containers, which will be placed around the perimeter of the developments where it will be accessible for collection. The containers will be appropriately sized based on the amount of waste generated by the developments. Two electric refuse trucks with a semi-automated hoist will collect the waste.
The five impacted developments include: O’Dwyer Gardens, Gravesend Houses, Haber Houses, Coney Island Houses, and Coney Island (Site 8). The five developments collectively have over 4,000 residents. Over the course of the pilot program, NYCHA anticipates keeping over 3,650 tons of trash and recycling off the curb.
NYCHA will work with the Departments of Sanitation and Transportation to gather data on waste collection, and will help shape guidelines for siting and container maintenance and assess the potential for a larger implementation of the program.
The program is made possible by $1.7 million in City funding.
Mayor Adams stated, “By containerizing waste, our administration is kicking rats to the curb and out of our city — and with the Clean Curbs for All initiative, we are bringing the same proven tools that are working for New Yorkers across the city directly to our public housing. Improving quality of life for NYCHA residents has been a top priority for our administration since day one. And by closing the lid on the ineffective strategies that rats love, we will keep 3,650 tons of trash off our NYCHA residents’ streets and unlock a cleaner, more sustainable city for all New Yorkers.”
NYCHA Chief Operating Officer Eva Trimble stated, “The amount of waste left on the curb represents an opportunity to test out a technology to containerize and service waste at the scale required by NYCHA. Clean Curbs for All provides us the opportunity to advance the Authority’s goal of waste containerization in pest-proof containers, as outlined in the HUD Agreement on waste management.”
By: Veronica Rose (Veronica is the CityLaw fellow and a New York Law School graduate, Class of 2018.)