20-second recap: It seems like every city is scrambling to find new ways to dispose of and recycle trash in a way that keeps their city looking better. But how do the major cities stack up? New York City Mayor Eric Adams is committed to “Get Stuff Clean.” That sounds great, but what does it mean on the practical level? From containerization to new setout rules to residential shared containers and a new look for Business Improvement Districts, NYC is committed to implementing new strategies for tackling their huge amount of trash. In this post we’ll discuss some of New York City’s new plans in comparison with the rest of the world.
In April 2023, the New York Department of Sanitation (DSNY) released the Future of Trash, Waste Containerization Models and Viability in New York City, an extensive study of best practices, challenges, and steps forward to change the way the city processes waste. Since a huge part of the report concentrated on containerization, we’ll try to include relevant information. Naturally, the Future of Trash had an entire section on New York as compared to the rest of the world.
These are some key highlights from the report:
Shared containers increase collection frequency. While shared garbage containers are a great option, they significantly increase collection frequency. The report states, “In Europe, collection frequency is typically six to 14 times per week (yes, up to twice a day!).” In New York City, collection frequency is only two to three times per week, depending on the neighborhood density.
Specialized and hoist trucks will likely be the choice for trash collection in Europe. The report stated, "Europe has tested multiple different containerization models over decades, and almost all cities are doubling down on the strategy of shared containers collected using specialized side-loaded or hoist trucks.”
Underground containers are also an option. In an unexpected twist, they are the preferred model for some cities, but they require “substantial space to build underground and a comprehensive underground map that does not exist in New York City.” In other words, it’s unlikely that subterranean trash containers will ever come to NYC in a meaningful way.
Overflowing containers surrounded by loose bags of garbage is just one of the challenges of shared containers in Europe. European containerization faces many challenges, especially overflowing containers. The DSNY report states that “this leads to wildly inefficient collection operations – because the standard collection trucks have mechanical lifts for shared containers, cities must run second dedicated trucks to collect the loose bags along the route.” One option is creating trucks that can side-load shared containers and accept loose bags.
While containerization is standard practice in Europe, no major city in North America uses shared stationary containers on that level. This means North America still lacks mass bin manufacturing widely available in Europe.
Of all major cities, New York is making a serious commitment to containerization. New rules include requiring all commercial trash to be binned and secure trash bins wherever prepared food is sold. CITIBIN has a strong history working with the city on municipal trash enclosures and currently has our beautifully designed trash bins in over 60 locations around New York City, including 28 Business Improvement Districts (BIDs), across all 5 Boros. And that doesn't count the 3000 bins around NYC for residential customers.
If you’d like to set up a containerization system for your home - or city - CITIBIN would love to be part of your plan.
If you’re unsure where to begin, you can download CITIBIN’s new buyer’s guide. In our guide to everything trash bins, we cover everything from measuring your space to choosing the look or locks that work with your space. If you know exactly what you want, you can create a customized bundle. If you love the look of CITIBIN, call us at 347.549.4121 or email us at info@citibin.com to chat about creating your own customized trash bin setup.
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