City of Davis Receives State Grant for New Recycling Bins

DAVIS, CA -- The City of Davis has been awarded a $197,851 grant from the California's Department of Resources, Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) program to purchase new recycling bins for downtown Davis, parks and greenbelts throughout the city.

“Our plan is to carefully evaluate the current bins, their placement and alternative bin types that can help us collect trash and recycling more effectively,” City Manager Dirk Brazil said. “Our goal is to increase recycling and reduce litter from overflowing bins.”

Many of the existing recycling bins lack clear labeling, while some have openings too small to allow items to be placed inside the bins. In areas of the downtown, bins regularly overflow with excess waste. In addition, the current bins in place in the downtown and parks do not meet stormwater regulations. Bins without closing lids fill with rain water, and when the water leaks out, it becomes contaminated by the waste from the bins and pollutes the stormwater, which flows to local waterways.

“Our crews spend five hours a day, seven days a week empting bins from Downtown Davis,” Brazil said. “Within hours of the bins being emptied, they are overflowing again.”

Part of this overflow, according to the city, comes from illegal dumping from businesses and residents of the downtown area. At other locations, the sheer volume of waste is too much for the current waste and recycling bins.

“We continue to work with downtown businesses on proper waste disposal,” Davis Chief Innovation Officer Diane Parro said in a statement. “We are also looking into purchasing solar powered compacting bins for high-volume waste areas in the downtown.”

Solar powered bins crush waste as it’s added that bins don't overflow. Once full, they send a message to city officials, letting them know.

“Many of the overflowing bins are full of paper cups from cafes and to-go eateries. They fill up the bins quickly and lead to overflow. A compactor can reduce that volume substantially so the bins will not overflow” Parro said.

Image via City of Davis