Austin has made major progress in its efforts to reduce the amount of trash it sends to landfills, but the city will have to make a big change if it wants to realize the ambitious goals it has set through its Zero Waste initiative. Current recycling efforts have succeeded in diverting 43 percent of the […]
Resources
Posted inResources
What’s up with Austin’s recycling?
“Would you like to have a little Coke?” asks Kathy Bell Hargrave, cracking open a can of soda in her daughter’s kitchen. Some things we do in life without giving them a second thought, but when we stop to think about them we realize they raise a lot of questions. This is one of those […]
Posted inResources
Some on Council want to privatize solid waste system
City Council Member Don Zimmerman wants to talk trash with his dais peers and is actively looking for two others who will support his proposal to privatize the city’s solid waste collection service. All other Council members at Monday’s Public Utilities Committee meeting curbed their enthusiasm for the idea, save for Council Member Ellen Troxclair, […]
Posted inResources
Coyote debate howls through committee
Debate over the region’s coyote policy continued at City Council’s Public Safety Committee on Monday, where public comment on the city’s policy took center stage for about an hour. In November 2014, the city passed a coyote management plan, and as part of the plan’s implementation, a few changes have been made at the city […]
Posted inResources
Privatization questions rankle union, expose rift between commission and city staff
A resolution that would explore the idea of a public-private partnership for collection of residential garbage, recycling and yard trimmings stalled out Wednesday night at the Zero Waste Advisory Commission, where commissioners opted to table the resolution and take no action. But even the specter of the resolution caused problems. Carol Guthrie, executive director of […]
Posted inEnergy, Resources
Customers seek changes in AE rate case
An unusual coalition of consumers has written to City Council to request that it slow down the proposed schedule for Austin Energy’s upcoming rate case. In addition, the consumers – including semiconductor giants Samsung and NXP as well as the Sierra Club, Public Citizen, Texas Legal Services Center, a Barton Creek property owners association and […]
Posted inResources, Water
Council members react to water meter audit
Although Austin Water and Austin Energy staff said at a City Council Public Utilities Committee meeting Wednesday that recent audits found the city’s water billing system to be accurate, the Council members who sit on that body said they still have unresolved concerns. The water meter read and testing audit, performed by independent utility consultant […]
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Council approves new recycling standards for construction material
In a victory for environmentalists, City Council voted Thursday to approve an ordinance that sets limits on the amount of material from a construction or demolition site that can go to waste. The ordinance, which passed 8-3, with Council members Sheri Gallo, Ellen Troxclair and Don Zimmerman in opposition, requires those involved in a construction […]
Posted inEnergy, Resources
Low-Income Weatherization Program scrutinized
The Office of the City Auditor and the City Council Audit and Finance Committee put Austin Energy’s Low-Income Weatherization Program under the microscope on Wednesday, finding that customers are satisfied with the program overall but that it needs improvement. The program, which Austin Energy has run since 1982, provides certain weatherization and health-related services to […]
Posted inEnergy, Monitor News & Media, Radio, Resources
Austin Monitor Radio: 600 MW of solar power?
The Sierra Club’s Cyrus Reed and city of Austin Electric Utility Commission chair (and former Austin Energy employee) Michael Osborne join Austin Monitor publisher Mike Kanin to talk about the potential of as much as 600 megawatts in additional solar power contracts for Austin Energy. Program is embedded below: [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/226880045″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” […]
Posted inEnergy, Resources
Full-scale solar option remains on table
In spite of a lengthy debate about how much solar capacity the city should contract into next month, the City Council Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee did not appear to rule out any options at its meeting on Thursday. The course that the discussion followed was similar to the one that has taken place over […]
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Citywide compost pickup plan faces resistance
Based on comments that a few City Council members made at Thursday’s budget work session, it appears that a proposed citywide, curbside organics collection rollout could get transformed into an opt-in program – if it remains in the forthcoming city budget at all. “I think it’s great for people who want to use it,” said […]