Recently, I came across an interesting article, which informed me of an alternative payment scheme for refuse removal. Normally, a taxpayer pays a flat yearly fee for most or all of their trash removal, there is no restriction on volume of garbage produced. An alternative idea already put into practice is a monthly fee of around $20/month plus a $2 sticker, for a 30-gallon trashcan. There are escalating fees and additional sticker costs for generating more refuse. Hopefully the economic incentive on homeowners would create a greater recycling effort. If businesses were held to the same standard, there would be a large profit incentive to develop less waste and greener products. On the other hand, this strategy may encourage illegal dumping, or be a burden on people with a fixed income.

What Do You Think?

Next Time,
-Aaron Siegel