For Immediate Release
CARTING INDUSTRY GOES AFTER CITY'S PLAN TO HIRE $8M CONSULTANT
Also releases first 3-minute social media video
Monday, December 19, 2016 - NY, NY- Representatives from New Yorkers for Responsible Waste Management (NYRWM), an organization comprised of New York City's commercial waste carters, say that with a little creativity and sound public policy the de Blasio administration can save $8 million while also keeping the current industry intact, protecting more than thirty local businesses from becoming insolvent and preserving hundreds of well-paying jobs for New York City residents, many of whom are hard to employ.
Ben Velocci, president of the association said: “The private carting industry in NYC is already highly regulated but we know that more can be done. New York City does not need to embrace ideas that create monopolies or stifle competition. This is a path to low worker productivity, poor customer satisfaction and stagnation. What we need are proposals that lead to business investment and spark innovation within the private sanitation industry.”
The Department of Sanitation of New York (DSNY) recently issued a request for proposals from consultants to assist with the implementation of a commercial waste zone system. The contract would run six years with a possible two-year extension. The total cost of the contract is $8 million. Bids are due to the city December 20, 2016.
In August, DSNY issued their long-awaited study that examined the potential of a zone collection system. However, NYRWM say that report relies heavily on outdated and faulty data, and downplays the high cost and collateral damage that would ensue should the administration completely revamp the way commercial waste is collected in New York City.
"This proposed overhaul is based entirely on unreliable and old data,” said Gerald Antonacci ofCrown Containerin Queens. "In the two-year interval between data collection and the issuance of the report, significant changesoccurred in the industry, including the reduction in the number of carters. This reduction would have a significant impact on the report's observations and findings, including less truck traffic and environmental impacts."
The association has begun to address their concerns about the city's proposed zone collection system, the impact on the competitive industry and local small businesses,through their social media platforms. The first video was released today. It was shot atIndustrial Cartingin Brooklyn.
In the first installment of the first person, three-minute, on camera interviews, Stephen Leone, president of Industrial Carting, details the consequences that zone collection - also known as franchising - would have on a niche carting company like Industrial Carting.
"We don't measure our employees in terms of weeks or months. We're measuring them in decades," says Leone in the video.
You can watch the videohere.
Contact: Lupe Todd-Medina -347.560.9141 -
New Yorkers for Responsible Waste Management (NYRWM)is an organization comprised of New York City’s commercial waste carters, also known as carters. NYRWM represents over a dozen companies, many of them multi-generational and family owned, whose employees live and work in all five boroughs. NYRWM is dedicated to collaborating with New York City government and its agencies, our large and small business owners and our local communities to reduce waste, promote safety for all waste management workers and to be a leader in improving our overall impact on the environment