New Haven committee backs application for DEEP co‑collection grant to divert food scraps

The New Haven Board of Alders' City Services and Environmental Policy Committee voted to apply for and accept a Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) Sustainable Materials Management Round 2 grant to pilot a co‑collection system that uses standardized bags for trash and a smaller bag for food scraps, city staff said at the Oct. 16 meeting.

Steven Winter, executive director of climate and sustainability, told the committee the grant application aims to fund a two- to three-year rollout that would start with organics collection and use color-coded bags so existing trucks and crews can collect organics and refuse together. "We would just start with the organics," Winter said, explaining the bags would be collected in the same tote and sorted later at a transfer-station facility.

The proposal would provide free starter bags to residents, a network of retail points to sell ongoing supplies, and a technical-assistance contractor to lead outreach and education. Winter said the city was also selected in an earlier DEEP infrastructure grant round for a roughly $3,300,000 co‑collection sorting facility at the transfer station; the new grant would support the curbside rollout and program design.

Why it matters: Winter and other presenters said Connecticut is losing local landfill and incineration capacity and that disposal costs have risen sharply. "In the last eight years, our cost per ton of garbage has increased over 50%," Winter said, estimating current disposal costs at about $120 per ton. The city estimates organics equal roughly one-quarter of residential weight; staff said diverting that material to digestion or composting could cut costs and emissions.

Program details presented to the committee include: an education and outreach team (12–15 staff through a contractor) to do door-to-door follow-up, multilingual materials, pilot on a few routes before scaling citywide, free starter bags, retail distribution for on‑going bag purchases, and countertop containers budgeted in the grant for residents who need them. Winter said the grant application is for roughly $2–3 million and that the initial contractor/education phase would likely begin in mid‑2026, with curbside rollout beginning in early 2027 and citywide scale later that year if awarded and funded.

Committee members and staff discussed operations and costs. Winter said recycling and organics typically cost less per ton to process than disposal: "If the disposal cost right now is, like, 122, recycling is about 90," he said, and clean food scraps to a digester could cost about $60 per ton versus $120 for disposal. The presenters said the net fiscal picture depends on sorting costs at the transfer/sorting facility, which remain to be negotiated with the regional waste authority.

Public-space enforcement and ongoing education were described as important complements. Rose Riqui, recycling educator (city), emphasized the door‑to‑door education and multilingual outreach: she said in-school and community engagement is part of the plan and that prior school programs have been successful.

The committee voted to move the item and approved the motion to apply for and accept the DEEP Round 2 grant if awarded. The motion did not list a mover or second in the record; no roll-call tally was given. Staff said the city has not yet been awarded this specific Round 2 grant and that any formal acceptance would be subject to legal review and the grant award notice.

The vote concludes the committee's authorization to pursue the DEEP grant application and to accept the award if terms are acceptable; the city will continue program design, outreach planning, and coordination with the regional authority and DPW if the award is received.