New York City’s solid waste transfer costs could rise $34 million

The city of New York’s Department of Sanitation (DSNY) is adding significantly to its transportation budget as a new municipal solid waste (MSW) transfer station system comes online, according to a document released in March 2017 by the New York City Independent Budget Office (IBO).

The IBO summary of its analysis says contracts tied to new marine transfer stations being built by the city are adding to costs: “Over the next few years, DSNY expects that the three remaining marine transfer stations that are not yet open will begin processing and exporting refuse. The new long-term export contracts for transporting waste from the marine transfer stations to landfills are more expensive than either the city’s current short-term contracts or its existing long-term contracts.”

In dollar amounts, according to the IBO, that means “another $89 million in city funds was added to DSNY’s budget from 2018 through 2021 (all years refer to fiscal years). While no new funding was added for 2017, the plan includes an additional $5 million in 2018, $24 million in 2019, $26 million in 2020 and $34 million in 2021.”

The document seems to question whether or not the long-term contracts tied to the marine transfer stations have held costs in check. “While the long-term waste export contracts were initially expected to produce savings, it has become apparent that the long-term contracts are actually more expensive on a per-ton basis than short-term contracts,” writes the IBO.

The IBO report’s author, Daniel Huber, writes that the new transfer station system was set up to respond to citizen complaints, thus not necessarily with lower operating costs as the top priority. “The increases in DSNY’s preliminary budget allocation for waste export costs is the result of the agency’s move to fully implement its 2006 Solid Waste Management Plan, providing a more equitable disbursement of sanitation infrastructure across the city, reducing truck traffic and curbing the use of private transfer stations,” states the report.