Committee approves pilot for underground waste containers, directs funding and reporting steps

The Energy and Environment Committee on June 3 approved a pilot program to test underground mechanized waste containers using technology from Nord Engineering, and directed LA Sanitation and the City Administrative Officer to pursue funding and contract negotiations.

Vincent Chow, an environmental engineering associate with LA Sanitation, described the technology and a renegotiated pilot proposal. Chow said the revised plan focuses on underground containers only and reduces the pilot cost from an initial $7.8 million estimate to $6.7 million. "This new proposal will bring down the total expected cost of this pilot to $6,700,000," Chow said during his presentation.

What the pilot would include: LA Sanitation’s negotiated package would deploy 54 underground containers (organized as 18 sets of black/blue/green containers to collect trash, recyclables and organics) at identified sites including San Fernando Gardens, Nicholson Gardens, Pueblo Del Rio and MacArthur Park; Nord would supply an additional 36 containers and the specialized truck attachments. The revised proposal reduces vehicle purchases to a single compactor truck plus a washer truck and a backup compactor attachment.

Funding status and gaps: LA Sanitation reported contributions and potential external funding but said it currently lacks roughly $3.0 million needed to complete construction costs for the first phase. The department identified a potential $1.0 million from a SB 1383-related local assistance grant (cited in the discussion as CarryCycle / Recycle funding) and a vendor match from Nord of up to $2.0 million; Nord committed approximately $1.9 million in equipment and attachments under the negotiated offer. LA Sanitation said truck-chassis funding may be supported by existing truck bonds, leaving a construction funding gap of about $2.95 million.

Operational and program benefits described by staff included reduced odor and rodent pressure (because waste is stored underground and kept cooler), increased security that reduces scavenging of recyclables, and greater on-site capacity (one underground container can store the equivalent of multiple dumpsters), which could reduce collection rounds in high-density or constrained locations.

Council requests and directions: Multiple council members asked for additional details before or as part of the report-back. Requests the committee recorded included: an assessment of whether the pilot can help meet state-mandated waste benchmarks (SB 1383 compliance), a demobilization plan and costs if the pilot ends, an analysis of long-term cost savings and options for a smaller-scope pilot, and a requirement that LA San identify locations for the six unallocated container sets with priority for sites likely to be heavily used during the 2028 Olympics. A separate friendly motion asked LA Sanitation to continue negotiations with Nord to preserve the vendor’s approximately $1.9 million equipment match if other funding sources are not identified, and to report on the feasibility of extending the $1.0 million local-assistance grant.

Vendor involvement and maintenance: LA Sanitation staff said Nord has committed to perform maintenance and repairs during the pilot. Assistant General Manager Alex (last name not specified in the record) said the pilot term would allow the city to learn maintenance costs and operational needs and that general services would handle standard truck chassis repairs while Nord would handle the underground equipment during the pilot.

Outcome: The committee approved the report and the three motions tied to the pilot (directing staff to identify funding sources, negotiate a contract, preserve vendor match if needed, and report back annually) by roll call vote, 4-0 with one member absent. The department will return with the requested funding and operational information.