HOUSTON – With the city's current recycling contract set to expire in days, Mayor Sylvester Turner was pleased to talk about the details of a new plan.
"I wanted to take this opportunity today to announce that recycling will continue without disruption," Turner said.
The move comes after negotiations hit a snag between the city and its current recycling contractor, Waste Management.
The new two-year deal will cost the city roughly $2.7 million a year, with a $90 per ton processing fee.
"The new agreement saves the city more than $900,000 per year and $2 million over a two-year period,"
Turner said.
"I would like to applaud mayor council and staff for employee creativity as we worked to a mutable acceptable agreement," said Don Smith of Waste Management.
The biggest difference is residents can no longer recycle glass in the green curbside bins, but they'll still be able to take it to designated city depositories.
"Some would call it a painful decision," Smith said. "It was a necessary decision as we worked to keep resident interests front and center."
Turner said the new contract will not only keep the services going but will also save the city money and more.
"It reaffirms our commitment to recycling and doesn't tie us to a long-term contract and avoids Waste Management employee layoffs, which would likely have resulted," said Turner.