Amidst severe delays, Houston Solid Waste Management intends to introduce an online map that will allow people to monitor the monthly pickup of heavy trash, and agency leadership is requesting more resources from the city council.
Mark Wilfalk, the department director, stated in a presentation that 50% of heavy rubbish is picked up on time. Seventy percent of recycling pickups are on time. Wilfalk cited Hurricane Beryl in July, the derecho windstorm later that month, and flooding in Kingwood in May as the main “stressors” causing the delays.
“We ve got to build more redundancy, more resiliency in our system, so that when we get hit with those storms, those unanticipated events, we can continue to provide those services as scheduled,” Wilfalk stated.
Mary Nan Huffman, a council member, made the case that the solid waste department needed to improve its storm preparation.
“We can probably assume that storms are likely in Houston by now. “You are aware that storms will occur,” Huffman remarked. “So how can we build these expected storms into the routine or the planning so that way we don t have to say, Oh well, it was unexpected,’ because we know they re coming.”
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The main delays in heavy garbage pickup were located in northwest Houston, according to a preview version of the web map, which is anticipated to appear in the “next week or so,” Wilfalk said.
“Hopefully by the first week of February, we will be caught up, and then we ll only be maybe a couple of days behind, and then we ll be able to get back on our normal heavy trash collection schedule,” Wilfalk stated.
Northwest Houston council member Amy Peck blasted the department’s existing communication strategies, which include the HTX Collects app.
Peck remarked, “It’s not even accurate,” “For the past two weeks, everyone on my neighborhood has put recycling cans out… I believe it would be beneficial if we could do whatever to get everyone on the same messaging. People are usually understanding as long as they are aware of when they should express themselves. The website and having a little more communication about when things will happen thrill me.
Wilfalk attributed the frequent delays to a number of issues, including the “unexpected” storms, the department’s high vacancy rate, inadequate vehicle reserves, the impact of holidays, and the addition of 52,000 residences to service routes since 2015.
Wilfalk claims that although the department can already handle 30,000 tons of heavy waste per month, it is currently collecting 40,000 tons.
In order to promote “redundancy” and “resiliency,” Wilfalk suggested that the department’s 2025 budget be raised from $107 million to $140 million.
