Beginning July 1, Norcal will be picking up trash and recycling
on the same schedule as residents are used to. The rates for pick
up, however, are going up.
The new bigger, bluer trash and recycling bins showing up in driveways across Hollister are a sign of change.
Hollister Disposal, the city’s longtime waste disposal company, is being left on the curb for a new trash and recycling provider – Norcal Waste Systems.
Beginning July 1, Norcal will be picking up trash and recycling on the same schedule as residents are used to. The rates for pick up, however, are going up.
Basic weekly garbage removal for a 64-gallon container will now cost $31.47 per month – up from $25.91. The monthly cost for pick up service on different sized containers, including 20-gallon, 32-gallon and 96-gallon, will also go up between $1 and $16 per month. Norcal is also offering a new yard waste removal service, which costs $7.59 per month.
The San Francisco-based company took over services after Hollister Disposal’s contract ran out and the city issued a request for proposal. Norcal won the new contract by promising to deliver services at cheaper rates than Hollister Disposal and Greenwaste Recovery.
“Our goal is – first-and-foremost – to deliver great customer service,” said Norcal General Manager Phil Couchee. “We are also going to promote recycling programs by sending out newsletters and talking to schools about recycling.”
When it comes to recycling, Couchee said Norcal is adding a few items to the list of what can be reused. Along with the usual recyclables – aluminum cans, cardboard, glass, plastic, newspapers, books and magazines – items such as batteries, small scrap metal items and clothing also can be thrown in the recycling bins beginning July 1.
Couchee also said Norcal hired all of the garbage truck drivers who had worked for Hollister Disposal. He said the drivers would keep their same routes and also would be receiving “significant” pay raises.
“These guys know the area – they know their customers. It just seemed natural to keep them around to do the job,” Couchee said.
Residents often have complained about “roaming rummagers” who dig through local recycling bins in search of items, which they take to the recycling plant in exchange for money. Hollister police have said they will not arrest people digging through trash cans unless the waste disposal company insists on pressing criminal charges against the individuals. Hollister Disposal has said in the past that it would not seek to prosecute the people, but Couchee said Monday that his company will take a different approach.
“People digging though trash and recycling cans is a problem everywhere, not just in Hollister,” Couchee said. “If we can determine who the individuals are, who are doing this consistently, then we will pursue (prosecution).”
