Wheaton Residents Support 'Pay-as-You-Throw' Pricing for Garbage: Survey

Submission by the city of Wheaton

>>> Survey: How Would You Like to Pay for Garbage Services?

The city received feedback from 2,172 Wheaton residents in the February survey, which was conducted online and was also available in a paper format. The full results can be found here. Here is a look at some of the highlights from the survey:

• About 85 percent of survey respondents felt satisfied or very satisfied with garbage collection, while 95% felt satisfied or very satisfied with recycling collection.
• 59 percent of respondents were satisfied or very satisfied with purchasing stickers for garbage and yard waste, while 27 percent were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the process.
• Survey takers expressed strong support for “pay-as-you-throw” pricing for garbage (where you pay for the volume of garbage you produce); 80 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the cost of garbage collection should be distributed to households based on how much garbage they generate. Sixteen percent said they agree or strongly agree that the cost should be distributed evenly among households.
• 49 percent agreed or strongly agreed that the cost of recycling should be distributed evenly among households, while 35 percent said they agree or strongly agree that cost for recycling should be based on how much recyclable material they generate.
• When asked if they would prefer a monthly fee-based cart service over the current sticker system, 32 percent would favor or strongly favor a monthly fee; 56 percent disfavor or strongly disfavor a monthly fee-based cart service.
• Forty-seven percent would favor or strongly favor a program where they were charged automatically only when they set their garbage cart at the curb; 34 percent would disfavor or strongly disfavor this alternative.
• Sixty-one percent of respondents said they would like a standardized wheeled cart of a size of their choice supplied for garbage collection. 41 percent said they would like a similar cart for yard waste.
• Twenty-six percent of respondents said they would like the option of having food waste collected in the same cart as their yard waste for composting; 25 percent said they didn’t know if they would like the food scrap composting option.

At the April 11 City Council Planning Session, city staff discussed the results of the survey with the city council. The discussion also centered on various options for the next waste hauler contract. Video from the city council's planning session from Monday can be viewed below:

With the feedback from residents and the City Council, the City will then develop a request for waste haulers to present proposals for the next garbage/recycling/yard waste contract.

>>> Wheaton Residents Sound Off on How to Pay for Garbage Services