Denver to Launch PAYT Trash Collection Program

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock recently announced the city is getting ready to launch a pay-as-you-throw (PAYT) trash collection program. Right now, the city doesn’t charge residents for the 139,000 tons of trash it collects each year, according to The Denver Post.

The new model would charge for trash collection, and the cost would depend on the amount of trash. According to the report, the change could improve the city’s recycling rate—only about 22 percent of the city’s municipal waste stream is recycled, compared with around 35 percent for recycling and composting nationally.

The Denver Post has more information:

Denver is preparing to launch a “pay-as-you-throw” trash collection program, Mayor Michael Hancock announced at an elections forum Thursday, reviving an idea that was discussed his first year in office.

“Within a year, we’ll be moving toward the pay-as-you-throw,” Hancock said at the Alliance Center.

Currently, Denver doesn’t charge residents for the 139,000 tons of trash it collects each year. The new model would charge for trash collection — and the cost would depend on the amount of trash.

Read the full article here.