Two members of the New York City Council joined local workers and businesses at a rally today on the steps of City Hall in protest of Intro 495, a proposal to reduce waste transfer station capacity in certain city neighborhoods. More than 50 private-sector waste and recycling industry employees joined with members of the Laborers Local Union 108 in voicing opposition to Intro 495, which the National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA) decries as a hidden tax that would increase costs to New York City businesses, cause greater traffic concerns and result in job losses in three city boroughs. NWRA estimates that forcing carters to use marine transfer stations for waste disposal would increase disposal costs by up to $100 million—tripling for private carters—and would leave New York vulnerable to infrastructure failures in the event of a natural disaster similar to Superstorm Sandy.
City Councilmen Ben Kallos (District 5-Manhattan) and Mark Treyger (District 47-Brooklyn) addressed the crowd, along with Tom Toscano, chair of the National Waste & Recycling Association’s New York Chapter, and Mike Hellstrom, Greater New York Metropolitan Area business manager & secretary-treasurer of the Local 108. Toscano is the CFO of a transfer station affected by Intro 495. Miguel Martinez, Local 108 member, and environmentally conscious restaurateur Ed Tretter, owner of 67 Burger in Park Slope and Fort Greene, Brooklyn, also spoke to the crowd. A hearing on Intro 495 is expected to occur next Wednesday, Jan. 28.
For more information, contact David Biderman at [email protected].