Zero Waste Amherst Urges Biweekly Trash Pickup, Fair Bidding Process in Hauler RFP

The following public comment was offered at the meeting of the Town Services and Outreach Committee on October 15, 2026

Good morning, My name is Darcy DuMont and I live in District 3. I’m speaking on behalf of Zero Waste Amherst today to make some comments on best practices in the RFP and to ask some questions. I’d first like to thank Mimi Kaplan and Guilford Mooring for their work on creating the new documents together so promptly and expertly.

PREFERENCE FOR BIWEEKLY TRASH PICK UP AS DEFAULT, WITH OPTION OF WEEKLY
It looks like you have this in the new draft document but it is worth repeating.

I have a comment about the need for biweekly pick up of trash as the default option, with the option of purchasing weekly pick up for a proportionally higher cost, plus overflow bags. I went back to look at the Zero Waste Amherst Trash, Recycling and Compost Survey of 2023. That survey  took a look at the trash habits of 523 residents of Amherst. Of the 232 respondents who were transfer station users, the majority (76%) visit the Transfer Station biweekly or less often. 170 members disposed of 30 gallons or less every two weeks. 

Generally speaking, people producing less than 30 gallons every two weeks should not pay the same amount as  those producing 30 gallons weekly. As Susan Waite said at your last meeting, waste should be looked at as a utility. The more trash you waste, the more you pay. I also see that Greenfield offers three sizes of bags – 8, 13 and 30 gallons for 1, 2 and 3 dollars, respectively.

Again, ZWA recommends biweekly pickup of a 32 gallon cart as the preferred default, with the option of weekly pick up, plus a choice of overflow bags. 

PREFERENCE FOR INDUSTRIAL COMPOSTING
On the topic of the means of composting, I believe you all received my email regarding how USA has moved from taking compost to Martin’s Farm to disposing of it at an anaerobic digestion with Vanguard. I assume the fact of having a contract with Vanguard would not prevent any bidder from having a separate arrangement with Martin’s Farm Composting facility.

BOARD OF HEALTH INVOLVEMENT
Lastly, I hope there’s some discussion of how the Board of Health is going to be involved in this process, since the hauler regulations fall under their jurisdiction.

TREATING POTENTIAL BIDDERS EQUALLY
A former RFI responder and potential bidder should not have a seat at the table of this process without the town reaching out affirmatively to other potential bidders to ensure equal access.

TRANSFER STATION NUMBERS
The number of folks who use the transfer station for trash and recycling is unclear because many folks use it for compost only, recycling only (because they support dual stream recycling)  or bulky waste only. According to the 2023 survey, as many as a third also subscribe to hauler service. Susan Waite suggested that the number of members disposing of trash could be estimated by the number of trash bags sold. 

Zero Waste Amherst supports townwide membership in the transfer station for disposing of hard to recycle materials – bulky waste, and other services that could complement the new contract for a much smaller annual sticker fee. This would be a big savings and more convenient for many residents and would also reduce waste significantly. 

NEW DOCUMENTS
I hope to get answers to these questions that were not answered during today’s meeting – regarding the new documents.

Where is preference for overflow bag pick up noted as advantageous?

Where are questions about compost containers for facilities with dumpsters? And what are the facilities with dumpsters?

Where is the preference for the means of composting as that with the largest range of materials and preference for a local composting facility?