Talking trash: Pittsburgh official seeks $9M to buy city residents new garbage cans

A $9 million investment in new trash cans for every household in Pittsburgh could curb litter and improve garbage collection, Public Works Director Chris Hornstein told City Council members Tuesday.

Hornstein’s pitch came after the city spent about $5 million buying blue recycling bins for residents.

The last batch of recycling bins was distributed in June 2023, capping off a yearslong effort to transition away from a bag-based recycling program.

Hornstein said giving every household a can with a tight-fitting lid would reduce litter left behind after animals break through plastic garbage bags or rummage in cans without lids.

Standardized garbage cans would allow for installing mechanical arms on garbage trucks to pick up trash. Workers would no longer have to heave cans into the back of trucks, which would reduce the risk of injuries, Hornstein said.

Officials have not yet estimated how much it would cost to outfit garbage trucks with such equipment.

Councilwoman Erika Strassburger, D-Squirrel Hill, said buying trash bins would be a necessary first step if officials ever sought to require residents to put their trash bags into bins.

“If we’re going to have a mandate for a can, we have to make sure people have a can,” she said.

Strassburger acknowledged garbage cans may need to be larger than the 32-gallon bins the city purchased for recycling. She also said she would want them to have wheels.

“I know that financing would be the barrier there, but if we could raise a grant, that would be incredible,” she said.

While officials acknowledged there’s more to be done to address the city’s litter issues, they highlighted ongoing efforts to cut back on trash in the streets and on vacant properties.

The city is planning to lease five new streetsweepers ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft in April, Hornstein said, to keep roads clean despite an aging vehicle fleet that has seen many sweepers out of commission.

Pittsburgh has ramped up its clean and lien program, which allows officials to clean up vacant properties and put liens on them. The city so far has conducted about 440 such clean-ups this year, up from 80 in 2022.