Baiting the Trap - NYC Dining Establishments May Soon Succumb to New Trash Containerization Law

by Mindy Cohn

As New York City continues its battle to reduce its proliferation of trash resulting in its ongoing plague of rats, officials might soon require City food establishments to utilize receptacles with tight-fitting lids exclusively, thereby negating the present-day practice of leaving out trash bags.

The new rule applies to businesses ranging from restaurants to caterers, food manufacturers, food wholesalers, and retail food stores. That is 40,000 businesses or twenty percent of NYC businesses, all of which are a critical target given that most of their refuse is exactly what the scourge or rats are looking for - food!

The new requirement is just another facet of the City's new hard focus on trash containers, as reported by BorohPark24 here. which is being pushed as of last month to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars over the next few decades after City officials reported it would be possible to use trash containers on 89 percent of the City's residential streets, permanently erasing 150,000 parking spots.

A public hearing will be held on June 22 regarding the new containerization law, which could go into effect as early as July.