Houston City Council approves $1.9M contract

Houston approved a $1.9 million contract with Galveston, Texas-based DRC Emergency Services, a disaster debris removal company, and Houston-based Nola Construction and Development Group to help the city’s solid waste management department collect residents’ waste and curb illegal dumping behaviors, Houston Chronicle reports. The contract was approved by city council Aug. 7.

This effort is meant to increase the collection of bulk waste items such as furniture and appliances that are often illegally dumped. Houston Chronicle says the contract also aims to reduce mosquito problems in the city, for which Houston ranks among the worst in the nation.

“We’ve got a lot of illegal dumping that’s taking place,” Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner says. “It’s creating health issues as well as drainage issues. You budget based on what your needs are—your priorities. I think people will agree that this is a priority and it’s a need.”

Mosquitoes can breed in materials commonly found among illegally dumped trash, such as tires and plastic buckets, says David Persse, medical director of Houston's EMS program.

“Because mosquitoes can breed in as little as a bottle cap full of water, it may seem daunting to try to win this particular aspect of the battle,” Persse wrote in a letter to Solid Waste Management Director Harry Hayes. “However, we do know of and can eradicate thousands of breeding sites with aggressive trash eradication efforts.”

To pay for the contract, which runs through December, the mayor is using some of the city’s general fund balance or reserves, Houston Chronicle reports.

“The good news is that the fund balance is strong enough that we can incur this expense,” Turner says.

The contract is the next step in improving Houston’s waste and recycling collections. Additionally, the city is currently awaiting the delivery of 90 new waste and recycling trucks to replace some of the old fleet, Houston Chronicle reports.