New York City has begun enforcing its new residential trash-container rules, with owners of single-family homes and buildings containing up to nine residential units now facing fines if garbage is placed curbside without an official NYC trash bin.

The enforcement phase began Tuesday, September 8, following a warning period that had been in effect since June 1. Under the new system, affected properties must use city-approved NYC Bins for ordinary household trash rather than leaving loose garbage bags on sidewalks or using other containers.

The initiative is part of the Department of Sanitation’s sweeping effort to move New York away from the familiar piles of black garbage bags that have long lined city sidewalks. Officials say containerizing trash will make streets cleaner, reduce food sources for rats and make garbage collection safer for sanitation workers.

“The department really wanted to rethink the way we approach our trash and the containerization efforts have really come out of that,” Department of Sanitation Commissioner Gregory Anderson said.

Property owners who violate the rules face escalating penalties. The first offense carries a $50 fine, the second costs $100, and a third or subsequent violation can bring a $200 penalty. City officials say building owners and managers are responsible for ensuring that they have enough bins to contain all of their property’s garbage.

“We’ve been giving out warnings since the beginning of June and have given out 32,000 warnings,” Anderson said.

The requirement applies not only to residential properties with one to nine units but also to certain buildings receiving Department of Sanitation collection, including nonprofits, houses of worship, city agencies and professional offices located in residential buildings.

Official NYC Bins are currently available through Home Depot locations throughout the five boroughs. The city offers several sizes, including 25-, 35- and 45-gallon containers. While the official city bin is required for regular trash, New Yorkers are not required to purchase official NYC-branded containers for recycling or compost.

City officials argue that one of the major benefits of the program will be improved worker safety. The official bins are designed to work with mechanical lifting equipment known as tippers, reducing the amount of garbage sanitation employees must manually lift.

“So instead of a sanitation worker throwing the bags into the bin which can cause injury which can cause them to be stuck by needles, these have little bars on the front that can be picked up by a tipper and just tipped unit he back of the truck,” Anderson said.

The bins are also marketed as rodent-resistant, a major component of the city’s effort to curb its persistent rat problem. City officials say eliminating exposed bags of food waste should make garbage significantly less accessible to rodents.

Some residents have welcomed the initiative.

“The city is absolutely filthy and disgusting and anyway that we can clean up the garbage that’s left on the street, would be fantastic,” Upper West Side resident Susan Hitzig said.

But reviews from neighborhoods where the containers have already been tested have been mixed. Asked whether the program had improved conditions over the past year, West Harlem resident Casir Ramos replied, “A little bit, a little bit.”

Others questioned whether the plastic containers actually solve the rat problem.

“They don’t work. It doesn’t keep the rats out,” Harlem resident Bernadette Adams said.

An Eyewitness News reporter even found one bin with a hole apparently chewed through its plastic lid.

“It’s okay. I think they could do better though with it,” Harlem resident Jason Ortiz said.

Despite the criticism, the city is moving ahead with a much broader containerization program. Properties with 10 to 30 units will eventually use either official NYC Bins or larger on-street containers, while buildings with 31 or more units are slated to use so-called Empire Bins — large stationary containers serviced by new automated side-loading sanitation trucks. The city says the larger-building program is expected to expand citywide by 2032.

“We’re rolling out empire bins, which are larger containers that actually go on the street and are picked up by new automated side-loading collection trucks,” Anderson said.

Hitzig said that despite questions surrounding the rollout, she believes the city’s effort represents progress.

“I think having these bins is a great beginning,” she said.

For thousands of New York property owners, however, the transition period is now over: putting regular trash out in anything other than the required NYC Bin can now result in a summons — and a fine.

{Matzav.com}