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Cambria and Cayucos residents facing huge garbage rate increases

September 28, 2022

By KAREN VELIE

Amid public outrage, officials in Cayucos and Cambria have agreed to raise trash rates over 40%.

While trash rates throughout the state are increasing because of new regulations regarding food waste and increases in gas prices, Cambria and Cayucos rate hikes are almost double average projected increases. In Cayucos, rates are set to increase 43.3%.

In order to allow the trash hauler in Cambria to recoup losses because of higher costs, rates will increase by 62.19% until April 1, 2023, according to county records. The rate of increase will then drop to 41.46%.

In San Luis Obispo County, rates in some areas are slated to increase from 3.3% to 22%, while other residents will have their rates increase by more than 40%.

Factors such as the selected management authority, where food waste is processed, and the contracted trash hauler make huge differences in planned rate increases.

For example, Cayucos and Cambria work with the SLO Integrated Waste Management Authority (IWMA), which tacks on an additional 5.5% to all bills to cover their costs. Those affiliated with the IWMA are given a cookie cutter approach, in which all residents are required to segregate food waste in a special container, with most haulers transporting the food waste to an anaerobic digester facility located south of the city of San Luis Obispo.

In comparison, Santa Margarita works with SLO County, which charges an additional 2% to cover its costs, less than half the cost of working with the IWMA.

In addition, the county worked to exempt rural residents from the food waste requirement. As a result, in Santa Margarita the rates are expected to increase by about 20%, compared to the more than 40% in Cambria and Cayucos.

And while haulers in Cayucos and Cambria transport food waste to the anaerobic digester facility, Templeton’s trash hauler – Mid-State Solid Waste – transports food waste to a much cheaper compost center in Creston. Rates in Templeton are expected to rise by less than 20%.


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If there was not all this goofy recycling attempts, certainly the bill would be smaller….by the way folks, non-colored cardboard, glass bottles and aluminum cans are all that is recyclable. None of your ice cream containers, plastic food containers, plastic bags, milk cartons, paper coffee cups and plates are recyclable. Most of you folks fill that big blue container to the rim and 99.999% goes in the dump.


5

Put it out for bid instead of giving in to Waste Management. It’s a monopoly to not allow other trash hauler bid the job.


15

Julie Tacker needs to investigate the CCSD, including present and former members. Between the money wasted on the “water project” which is not operational and now the substantial increase in rates for waste hauling, an independent investigation is needed.


19

Companies raise rates to cover added costs but the people can’t raise their wages to cover anything. Also they make it mandatory for you to have garbage pickup which is insane.


17

Mandatory garbage pick up is not “insane.“ It’s based on the very rational theory that no human exists who does not create some amount of garbage that needs to be disposed of in a safe manner that does not infringe upon others. The only people that should be excluded from mandatory pick up are people who live in an approved garbage dump.


-12

Think about the good old days of capitalism with free enterprise, then came the regulated stare and compare justifications that have evolved into the communist rates. Yes that’s what it is, we who are in this sensitive commune now get to pay the same, that’s fare, right. That is exactly the non-argument before you today.


-3

Just another hard day at the trough for the area’s county supervisor, Bruce Gibson.


16

I remember during the past few years or maybe the last ten, articles reflecting significant corruption at the IWMA that sets or allows the waste hauler to increase rates. I also remember an article about the massive embezzlement and gifting of public funds by this agency by staff and subcontractors associated with the IWMA. Now years later we need to pay higher waste disposal rates which coincidentally generates additional fees / revenue for the IWMA. Is this really necessary, is it to backfill the ill-gotten gain or is it simply another fleecing by the same crone-ies. Just asking. Seems to me that an independent panel of non-governmental crooks should look into this.


28

Get chickens, recycle, personal trash can be cut way back


2

Seems like people vote down practical and truthful? If they’d learn to care of themselves and quit depending on their mommy and daddy they would then have a logical vote.


1