Austin City Council Rejects Proposed Contract from Republic Services

City Council voted unanimously last week to kill a garbage collection contract after outcries from both environmentalists and waste hauling companies that claimed they would be hurt by the proposed deal between the city and Republic Services, a Phoenix-based waste disposal firm.

Council’s decision followed a recommendation by the Zero Waste Advisory Commission earlier this month to deny the three-year, $7.7 million contract for Republic to collect and dispose of waste from city facilities and at special events. Among the chief concerns expressed by commissioners about the contract was that it proposed dumping the waste in the Austin Community Landfill, which has long been the target of complaints and litigation by neighborhood groups and environmentalists over what they say is persistent odor and safety hazards.