What Goes Into the Price of Trash Service All of us are concerned about rising prices. The waste industry, like most others, is doing its best to hold the line while facing increases in its own costs. Waste companies are squeezed by the same cost pressures that affect businesses in general—higher taxes and escalating expenses for things like fuel, insurance, and labor. Contracts for trash collection and disposal now reflect additional tipping taxes instituted in Pennsylvania in 2002 and increased per-ton levies that some counties have added on. Waste companies send out fleets of trucks on a daily basis and fuel is a huge cost item. As all consumers know, fuel prices have skyrocketed. The cost of other petroleum-based products—tires, lubricants, and hydraulic oil—also has risen.

• The waste industry is affected by steel prices. The cost of new garbage trucks has risen by approximately $10,000 as a result of climbing steel prices. New federal emission standards also have added to the cost of trucks.
  
  
• Insurance is a major cost. Workers’ compensation rates reflect the fact that trash collection is ranked as a dangerous occupation. In some cases, the premiums for umbrella liability policies have increased as much as 300 percent since 2002—as a result of 9/11, bonding demands, and the insistence of municipalities on indemnification language in their contracts.
  
  
• The waste industry is labor intensive. Wages have increased between 20 and 40 percent since 2001, yet turnover remains high and our industry competes with other industries for good people. One of our member companies estimates its cost of hiring and training a single trash truck driver runs from $5,000 to $7,000. On top of this, the cost of health insurance for employees is soaring.
  
  
• Landfill space in the eastern half of the Commonwealth is dwindling. Landfills are filling up and in some cases closing, as the state Department of Environmental Protection continues to hold the line against expansion permits. The simple law of supply and demand dictates that prices will rise as landfill space becomes more scarce.
  
  
• Transportation costs rise as distance to disposal increases. Disposal capacity is dwindling in southeastern and south central Pennsylvania. If trash has to move farther west, to where disposal capacity is greater, more trucks likely will be traveling longer distances through Pennsylvania instead of making short trips in eastern and central Pennsylvania.
  

To the Point
Waste companies strive to provide good service at reasonable prices. The National Solid Wastes Management Association points out that residential trash collection remains a “real bargain” for consumers. It notes that “messenger services and express mail companies typically charge to pick up a single small package what a garbage company charges for an entire month of service.”