Politics & Government

New Waste Contract Saves Lynbrook Money

Agreement with Covanta lowers village's costs to dispose of garbage by more than $50K.

The village of Lynbrook will be spending less tax dollars on disposing of residents' waste now that officials have worked out a new agreement with Covanta Energy.

The company, which specializes in converting waste to energy, had been negotiating with the villages of Lynbrook and Garden City since March 2012. Three weeks ago the parties met in Garden Cityand hammered out a deal.

"We got the results we wanted," Phil Healey, superintendent of Lynbrook's Department of Public Works, told the board Monday. "They value us as a client ... and made efforts to lower [the rate] as much as they can.

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Covanta agreed to a seven-year contract extension that lowers the rate it charges the village of Lynbrook to dispose of its trash from $74 per ton to $68 per ton. (Garden City also received this same rate.)

""Between the two villages, we have 25 tons of refuse, so that's very important to Covanta," village attorney Peter Ledwith stated. "They wanted to make a deal with us, because of the combined amount of trash."

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The negotiations, which were handled by Garden City attorney Gary Fishberg, didn't cost Lynbrook a cent in legal expenses, Ledwith pointed out. He also said that the "bare-bones" deal couldn't have been any better. (A Town of Hempstead provision prohibits the rate from going below $66 per ton, according to village officials.) 

The Lynbrook village board unanimously approved the contract during Monday night's work session. The agreement, which is retroactive starting in November 2012, covers the two years remaining on the existing contact, plus five additional years. The contract extension is expected to save the village between $50K and $60K annually in disposal fees.

In addition to these savings, the village also continues to lower its waste disposal expenses through recycling. By diverting recyclable goods out of the trash, Lynbrook is able to reduce the amount of garbage it brings to the plant (saving money), and it sells the re-usable materials to a recycling plant (bringing in revenue). In November 2012 alone, this practice saved the village roughly $11K.

"It's nice to stay with Covanta. They are convenient to us," Healey said, explaining that the Westbury plant is located relatively close to Lynbrook, saving the village time and money.  

He added, "This secures our disposal site for the next seven years, which is even more important."


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