Written and endorsed by members of the CT Zero Waste Coalition: Pippa Bell Ader, Allison Allen, Susan Eastwood, Mary Hogue, Becky Kessler, Sharon Lewis, Ian McDonald, Amber Schmidt, Madison Spremulli, Sierra Club Connecticut Chapter
Connecticut has a waste crisis, and it’s costing taxpayers money. Both burning trash in-state and shipping trash to other states is expensive. So, what can we do? Throw less stuff out! Save As You Throw (SAYT) programs are a proven policy idea to encourage residents to save money by reducing waste.
The problem is obvious. As our society increasingly consumes and throws away single-use disposable items and plastic packaging, we are running out of places to put all of the trash. Since the closing of Hartford’s problematic MIRA incinerator, Connecticut has been sending around 40% of its waste to out-of-state landfills and incinerators and burning the rest in-state. Most waste facilities are sited in environmental justice and low-income communities, adding health and environmental burdens to already underserved populations. In addition, incineration is already expensive, and tipping and transportation fees for trash exports are expected to increase as other states start to hit landfill capacity limits too. Rising waste disposal costs are one more household budget stressor that families don’t need.
One proposed solution is to build more places to burn trash. But new incineration and waste conversion facilities cost tens to hundreds of millions of dollars and take many years to expand or build. It is far from certain that a buildout of in-state capacity would reduce tipping fees or, by extension, municipal and residential solid waste bills. In addition, 7 out of 8 Connecticut counties graded by the American Lung Association already scored a D or an F for air quality. Burning more trash can’t be the answer!
A Better Path Forward - Save As You Throw
We have a better idea: Save As You Throw (SAYT), also known as Unit Based Pricing or Pay As You Throw, has been proven to decrease solid waste by bringing the financial benefits of waste reduction directly to residents through reduced taxes and trash hauling costs. The idea is simple – only pay for the trash you generate!
The first benefit is that it’s fairer. Neighbors well-practiced at reuse who create tiny amounts of trash shouldn’t pay the same amount for waste disposal as households creating multiple bags of trash every week. Second, it incentivizes improving recycling, reuse, and composting by rewarding folks who reduce waste with a lower bill. This leads to meaningful reductions in trash!
It's Already Proven
This idea isn’t theoretical. Many Connecticut municipalities have been cutting costs and reducing waste with SAYT for decades, including Stonington, which cut its municipal solid waste (MSW) to nearly half of the state average, and Mansfield, which cut its MSW by a third. And it’s not just smaller towns. Worcester, MA, New England’s second biggest city, has a successful SAYT program too!
There are lots of ways to implement SAYT, so each municipality can implement a system that works for them. For example, some municipalities offer special trash bags or stickers for residents to purchase, and some localities offer variable-sized trash cans with different rates for each size. In towns where trash is brought directly to a transfer station by residents, weight stations or punch-cards can reward residents who create less trash.
To ensure community buy-in, extensive community listening and education campaigns can invite neighbors to design a SAYT program that best suits their municipality, making the program work for everyone in the community, especially low-income residents, the disabled, and busy families. For example, some communities with bag-based systems offer free bags to low-income families and seniors. A well-designed program reduces costs for folks consuming less and reduces trash for the entire state!
The trash crisis is not going away. We need creative solutions. Before we ask Connecticut residents to fund the construction of more polluting trash-burning facilities, let’s try something proven to work. Save As You Throw programs work. Let’s expand them across the state!
Written and endorsed by members of the CT Zero Waste Coalition: Pippa Bell Ader, Allison Allen, Susan Eastwood, Mary Hogue, Becky Kessler, Sharon Lewis, Ian McDonald, Amber Schmidt, Madison Spremulli, Sierra Club Connecticut Chapter
CT Zero Waste Coalition Website: https://www.cceej.org/ctzwc-about
