Medford Mayor Speaks Out In Response To Trash Collection Criticism

MEDFORD, MA — Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn has responded to the controversy surrounding the recently-announced upcoming change to the trash collection schedule.

Trash will be collected every other week as of July 1, 2027. The change is one component of Medford’s Climate Action and Adaptation Plan which aims to increase composting among residents as opposed to regular trash disposal. The announcement has been met with some criticism on both a local and national level.

“I want to take some time to give you some facts that will hopefully help calm some fears and some anger that I know is out there,” Lungo-Koehn said in a video.

She emphasized that the contract was worked on and approved by other city leadership bodies such as the City Council and Solid Waste Advisory Committee. However, it had not been publicly discussed since it was first approved in the summer of 2023. Lungo-Koehn said that the city will work to prepare for the change in the 19 months leading up to when the new schedule takes effect. She alluded to rising trash collection costs as a large reason for the new schedule.

“Weekly trash collection will cost us $3.5 million per year by 2027,” Lungo-Koehn said. “We also pay per ton for the disposal. We paid a million and a half for trash disposal in the first year of the contract, and that goes up by five percent per year.”

She believes the city will save more than $13 million throughout the eight years of the contract if the change is implemented. Lungo-Koehn emphasized that with compost collection continuing weekly, potential issues such as odor and rodent presence will not get worse if regular trash is collected less often.

“Keeping food waste in the trash actually does create the problem,” Lungo-Koehn said. “The state has proposed a food waste disposal ban to go into effect in 2030, so we’re being proactive.”

A virtual public input session on the topic is scheduled for Monday, Dec. 15.

See Also:

Medford Gets Trash Reduction Plan Funded Through Grant