Town of Amherst
Totes will be arriving in April
by JESSICA L. FINCH Associate Editor

A bond for $1.7 million was approved Monday by the Amherst Town Board for the purchase of more than 33,000 garbage totes.

Town resident Tom Sweeney said, "It's about time."

The long process had been stalled at the Town Board level before the 6-0 vote to approve the bond. Council Member Bill Kindel was absent from the meeting.

"They will begin arriving tentatively around April 15 and delivered to residences with a set of instructions," Refuse Officer Len Fiegl said of the totes.

Initially, one 95-gallon tote will be delivered to each residence, which includes duplexes. He said most apartment complexes use private garbage removal services and will not be part of the program.

Rehrig Pacific is providing the totes, which are manufactured in Erie, Pa.

"In anticipation of a new contract this year and knowing we would have a tote program, we made sure the trucks had cart dumpers on them," Fiegl said, about adapting the vehicles to the new program.

There were several reasons why the town chose to begin a tote program, but the most publicized reason has been the rodent issue.

"There is a severe rodent problem experienced in areas of town," he said. "But this will not eliminate the problem completely; it's an attempt to control it."

The totes will reduce the availability of the food source which has been cited as a main reason for rodent infestations.

"One has to bear in mind that this is only one portion of the puzzle in connection to the rodents," Fiegl said. "Residents still have to maintain their property."

The town also moved into a tote program to get a better handle on solid waste services by having a uniformed system. Fiegl said various sizes of containers do not work as well as a universal model.

He also anticipates that the program will reduce the number of materials blowing around the streets on trash days because the totes are heavy and include lids.

Along with the totes, there will be a Town Code change that will require all garbage be placed in the tote.

The $1.7 million bond is for five years.