Q:  What is PAY-AS-YOU-THROW?

A:  Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) is a system by which you pay for the trash you discard.  The core idea of Pay-As-You-Throw is that

when you recycle more,
and discard less trash, 
you pay less. 

Q:  Why are we starting this program?  What's wrong with what we're doing now?

A:  Trash disposal costs are soaring.  Last year Natick paid over $950,000 in 'tipping fees' to dispose of over 9,000 tons of trash.  That amount does not include costs for staff to pick up the trash, gas, tolls and tires for the trash trucks, etc. All of these costs, as well as the ‘tipping fees’, go up every year.  Reducing waste disposal costs is increasingly important. 

Q:  What can we do?

A:  We can't do much about the per-ton tipping fee or the other costs, but we can do a lot by reducing the amount of trash we send to be incinerated.  The simplest way -- and the one that makes the most sense from many perspectives -- is to recycle more of the things that we currently discard in the trash. 

Q:  Why can't we find a less expensive place to dispose of our trash?

A:  State law requires that all unlined landfills in Massachusetts must close, and many already are.  Natick's own landfill -- the 'dump' -- was closed in 1998.  The only available option is incineration, and Millbury, the closest facility, is also the least expensive.

Q:  How does PAYT work?

A:  Currently, the cost of solid waste management -- trash disposal and recycling -- is paid for by local real estate taxes and the $175 per year trash fee implemented in July 2002.  Residents can throw away as much as they like and the entire cost must be covered by these funding sources.  Under PAYT, many of the costs are covered by a per-bag payment, and the $175 per year trash fee is discontinued.  There is still no per-bag or per-bin fee for recycling, so PAYT provides an economic incentive to residents who reduce their trash volume and recycle more.  Experience in other towns shows that under a PAYT program, households put fewer recyclable materials in the trash,  and instead put them in a recycling bin.

Q:  Why is PAYT better than the system we have now?

A:  The advantages fall into three categories:

ECONOMIC:  Because PAYT rewards trash volume reduction and recycling, it reduces the tonnage on which tipping fees must be paid. Other financial benefits include potential for decrease in highway tolls, equipment costs and staff overtime, and creation of recycling-industry jobs.

ENVIRONMENTAL/HEALTH:  By decreasing the amount of trash being incinerated, PAYT reduces the amount of toxic pollutants released into the atmosphere.  In Massachusetts, incinerators are among the largest sources of dioxin and mercury.

EQUITY:   PAYT is a fairer way of paying for trash disposal, since households producing lower volumes of trash (like senior citizens, single-person households and careful recyclers) pay only for what they themselves produce.  They pay less for disposal than households that generate larger volumes of trash.

Q:  What is Natick doing about PAYT?

A:  Since April 2002, a committee appointed by the Board of Selectmen has been studying PAYT.  They have concluded that PAYT is the single most effective step Natick can take to reduce waste and save  tax dollars.

Q:  How will PAYT work in Natick?

A:   The $175 per year trash fee will be discontinued, and about 50% of the total cost of waste disposal will be funded by the sale of specially-marked PAYT trash bags. 

Bags will be sold in 10-packs in two sizes:  a 30-gallon size capable of holding up to 25 pounds of trash, and a 15-gallon size capable of holding up to 12 pounds of trash.  Bags will be on sale beginning in early June 2003 at...

 Stop & Shop Supermarket
 Roche Bros Supermarket
 Tilly & Salvy's Bacon Street Farm
 Town Paint & Supply Co.
 Jones Drug Inc.
 Li'l Peach
 White Hen Pantry Inc
 Donelan's Supermarket (Wayland) 

Q:  Will I be able to take a tax deduction on my expenses for PAYT bags?

A:  No.

Q: Is this a new idea in Massachusetts?

A:  No.  Over 95 towns have already adopted some form of PAYT, and the Mass. Department of Environmental Protection is striving to make PAYT a standard for the state.  Over 4000 communities nationwide have adopted PAYT programs. 

Q:  Is PAYT the same idea as the current ‘trash fee’ ?

A:  No.  The ‘trash fee’ was imposed as a temporary (one year only) measure to help balance the budget.  It violates the basic principle of PAYT, which is that you should pay less if you discard less. 

Q:  When the trash fee goes away and PAYT starts, will I be paying more or less?

A:  The majority of households should pay less under PAYT.  Generally, only households that continue to put out much more than the average amount of trash will see increased expenses. 

Q:  Why isn’t it to my advantage to insist on getting as many free services as possible from the Town?

A:  Town services are never ‘free’ -- you pay for them through the tax levy.  Each year, Town government decides what services will be provided, the Town budget reflects the costs of those services, and the taxpayers get the resulting bill.  The idea that trash disposal is or ever was ‘free’ is an illusion resulting from the fact that it’s simply not spelled out on your tax bill.  (Neither, for that matter, is the cost of having a police force, a fire department, a school system, etc.)  One of the reasons that PAYT works is that it makes it clear to everyone that additional trash generation and disposal costs money.  Some people find this realization painful, but for most residents, PAYT will cost them less than the current $175 per year trash fee.

Q:  How do we know that PAYT will reduce trash volume and increase recycling?

A:   According to the EPA, the average waste reduction reported by PAYT communities is between 25% and 45%.  Seven Mass-achusetts communities averaged a 36% increase in recycling in the first year. 

Q:  Do people in other communities like PAYT?

A:  In every community where PAYT is proposed, there are residents who are certain they won’t like the program.  But once residents see the program in action, it receives strong support from a majority of people, largely because of its cost savings and inherent fairness. 

Q:  How do we know that PAYT won’t be overly complicated or inconvenient?

A:  Natick’s PAYT program will be easy to understand and use.  Specially-marked PAYT trash bags will be available at various locations.  After the program begins on July 1, 2003, only trash in PAYT bags will be collected. Your regular pickup day remains the same. 

Q:  Won’t PAYT impose an unfair burden on low-income residents?

A:  No.  Low-income residents will also share in the overall savings achieved by PAYT, and because PAYT restores some measure of individual control over the trash bill, households that need to economize are given the option to do so. On balance, PAYT is advantageous to low-income households.

Q:  Will there be any charge for recycling?

A:  No.  Since a goal of PAYT  is to increase recycling, there will be no additional charge for materials put out for collection by the Town’s recycling contractor. 

There will also be no additional charge for yard waste put out on yard waste collection days.

Q:  What about people who currently use barrels instead of bags?

A:  All trash must be in a Natick PAYT bag.  You may place the filled PAYT bag in a barrel to protect it from wildlife while waiting for pickup.  The Natick PAYT bag must be easily pulled out of the barrel, or it will not be collected.  Trash in barrels with a commercial trash bag liner, or no liner, will not be collected.

Q:  Since the volume of recycled items is expected to increase, won’t we need to pick up recyclables every week?

A:  Recycling will continue to be picked up every other week.  If the amount of recyclables increases so that the trucks cannot handle the volume, we will look into weekly pickup.

Q:  What about really big items like refrigerators, TVs and furniture?

A:  Bulky items will continue to picked up by the Town at curbside for a separate fee. Bulky items include TV sets, computer monitors, refrigerators, freezers, furniture, carpet, etc.  It does not include building materials or hazardous waste.  Please call for more information on disposal of these items.

Q:  Won’t I be paying twice for trash collection -- once through taxes and again when I buy PAYT bags?

A:  No.  The total cost of waste management will be divided between the tax levy and the bags you purchase.

Q:  Since all taxpayers subsidize schools whether or not they have children in the schools, why shouldn’t all taxpayers subsidize trash collection even if they aren’t generating much trash?

A:  Most taxpayers are willing to subsidize education because they feel that it’s in the public interest.  But generating more trash is not in the public interest -- quite the opposite.  PAYT strikes a balance between taxpayer subsidy and user per-bag payments.

Q:  Where can I get more information?

A:  By accessing the Town website at www.natickma.org, by calling the PAYT Hotline at  508 647-6564, or by e-mailing the Town at PAYT@natickma.org.