City Plans Old Recycling Bin Drop-Off

The end of the road has come for those old, beat up recycling bins that have been carried to and from the curb for the last few years in every Cranston neighborhood.

With a new trash contract in effect Monday, and dozens of 65-gallon trash and recycling bins delivered to all Cranston residences, the city has planned a city-wide drop off for the old bins, which will be recycled by Full Circle Recycling of Johnston.

The drop off will be on Saturday, July 26 at the Cranston Ice Rink at 900 Phenix Ave.

The drop off will run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The new trash contract is expected to save the city about $200,000 per year but it has met some resistance from residents and several elected officials who say the 65-gallon bins aren't enough, or are balking at the $18 per item bulky pickup fee.

Advocates for the contract said the new bins will help to put a lid on the ongoing rat infestation plaguing the city since the new bins have permanently attached lids. 

It also stands to give the city's recycling rate a boost. As it stands, the city's rate is 23 percent — far below the 35 percent the state wants each municipality to meet, else they face higher tipping fees at the Central Landfill in Johnston.

In communities that have the newer bins, which are designed to work with automated collection trucks with large mechanical arms that grab and empty them, recycling rates tend to increase since recyclables can be stuffed into the bin without specific bagging or bundling requirements.