Chris Paul/Houston Public Media
Out-of-service vehicles, contaminated trash blended with recyclable supplies, staffing shortages and a single depot with lengthy wait occasions — these are among the many contributing components to the usually days-long delays in recycling pickup throughout Houston.
“It’s a problem proper now due to assets,” Larius Hassan instructed a metropolis council committee final week, hours after he was confirmed as the brand new director of the stable waste division.
Issues with the stable waste division generate essentially the most 311 complaints within the metropolis. Of about 53,000 open 311 circumstances on Monday, about 24,000 involved stable waste points.
Calls about missed recycling pickups are hovering upwards, with practically 15,000 complaints about missed recycling over the previous 12 weeks in comparison with about 4,000 throughout the identical span in 2024. Missed rubbish complaints over the identical timeframes held regular, with about 9,500 calls throughout these 12 weeks from yr to yr.
The division’s fleet consists of 219 vehicles, however Hassan stated upwards of half of them are sometimes out of service. A couple of third of the autos are over seven years outdated with greater than 150,000 miles.
“We’re seeing breakdowns each day,” Hassan stated.
On Wednesday, town council will vote to allocate about $12.5 million for brand new vehicles, which a spokesperson for the division stated will buy 25 extra autos. Hassan stated the division wants about 70 extra vehicles. He additionally stated the division wants to rent 30 extra drivers.
In an effort to grow to be extra environment friendly and enhance service supply, the stable waste division is “rebalancing” decade-old rubbish and recycling pickup routes to account for inhabitants shifts.
Hassan stated extra public training is required about what’s and is not recyclable as a result of excessive contamination charges result in frequent rejections on the recycling plant, which will increase prices and time for these hundreds. About 40% of a typical load is contaminated, and the plant rejects hundreds which are about 60% contaminated.
Heavy trash pickup is at the moment delayed by two weeks. Yard waste can be delayed, and the division is choosing it up with heavy trash. Hassan stated the division will run an on-demand pilot program for these providers, somewhat than persevering with to run routes on a delayed foundation.
The stable waste division will depend on income from town’s $3 billion basic fund, which faces persistent deficits. Metropolis officers usually talk about implementing a trash charge to spice up funding for the division.
Hassan expressed enthusiasm for that mannequin in the course of the committee assembly.
“When you possibly can adequately workers your staff, and you’ve got the gear that it is advisable to exit and do a job, it makes the entire world simple,” Hassan stated.
As Mayor John Whitmire’s administration sought to chip away at a frightening finances deficit, the division’s finances was slashed from $107 million to $101 million within the 2026 fiscal yr, which began in July. Twenty-one workers participated in Whitmire’s voluntary retirement buyout program, which Hassan stated “nearly crippled” one service space.
“If we’re going to have a stable waste division, and we’re going to supply this service to our constituents, we’ve to fund it at what the optimum price of service is,” Council Member Sallie Alcorn stated on the committee assembly.
