October 12, 2022. Both the St. Charles Township Board and St. Charles Village Council voted to approve the new membership agreement with the Mid-Michigan Waste Authority (MMWA), during the week of October 10.
During the Tuesday, Oct. 11 St. Charles Township Board meeting, Supervisor Don Ackerman explained that the new curbside service for trash and recycling will be a blended rate, adjusted when the new curb carts arrive. The new collection trucks will be fueled by compressed natural gas (CNG), instead of diesel. As a result, there won’t be added fuel surcharges under the new contract.
Ackerman said, “With the new rollout, there’s going to be a big education push for recycling. If we don’t get 75 percent recycling participation, we could get charged an extra fee. They’re going to send out big carts (one for trash and one for recycling).”
St. Charles Township Treasurer Kristy Lorencz examined the curbside collection budget, which is funded by assessments its residents pay for curbside pickup. Since the current waste collection fund is running short, Lorencz recommended the township set the new curbside trash collection with recycling fee at $185 per household, for fiscal year 2022-23. The township board approved.
During the Wednesday, Oct. 12 meeting of the St. Charles Village Council, Village Manager Hartmann Aue explained that as part of the MMWA, the village tends to get lower prices for trash collection and recycling services. The new contract runs from Jan. 1, 2023 to Dec. 31, 2032. The village has opted to stay with Waste Management for curbside services. All of the service provided will be utilizing large, 96-gallon wheeled carts; one for trash and one for recycling.
Aue said, St. Charles village property owners will pay less than the $184 paid this year, in 2023.
He said there’s going to be a delay in the cart service. If the carts don’t arrive until mid-summer, it will lower the cost. Waste Management will be switching to trucks fueled by compressed natural gas, as well, eliminating the fuel surcharge, which should help keep costs more accurate in the future.