Since June, the proposal to convert trash hauling in Maplewood to a single contractor and to a pay-as-you-throw system has generated a lot of interest in town — not all of it positive.

The proposal — researched and presented by the Maplewood Environmental Advisory Committee and Green Team — would seek to boost recycling and composting as residents would be incentivized to generate less trash and thereby save money.

Town leaders have heard some significant concerns from residents through surveys and at an Oct. 24 informational meeting. Residents have raised issues about illegal dumping, the costs to large families, and adding to town bureaucracy by taking administration of garbage hauling in house.

But raising the specter of a single trash hauler for the town (currently, residents contract directly and individually with one of two trash haulers, although the town approves which haulers are allowed to operate in the town), has prompted some proactive proposals from those haulers.

On Dec. 6, Deputy Mayor for the Environment Fred Profeta updated the Township Committee on his work researching specifications for a potential RFP (Request for Proposals) for such a system. Profeta noted, "In my view, both the individual contract and unitary contract should be assessed in light of Waste Industries' proposing pay-as-you-throw for its customers."

Profeta cited "significant developments" in his update of the pay-as-you-throw and unitary hauler contract discussions at the Dec. 6 Maplewood Township Committee meeting.

He noted that "the haulers are proposing alternatives that would not involve a unitary contract."

Mayor Vic DeLuca noted that Profeta had also heard from Waste Management on Monday, Dec. 5. "Clearly what's driving this is that they don't want a unitary contract," said DeLuca.

Town Counsel Roger Desiderio said he felt uncomfortable with Profeta going back and forth with haulers, as the process was to be getting information to create specifications for a request for proposal. "I don't think that's appropriate for you as a member of the Township Committee," said Desiderio. "This was intended as a fact-finding process to put together a bid."

Later, Profeta said that he and Desiderio had had a follow-up conversation: "Basically when we're talking about the unitary contract, it's okay to be talking to haulers about what kinds of contractual provisions they are seeing," said Profeta, "but not okay to get into money because that's where they are going to compete. And we've been scrupulous about that."

Profeta said that, because of the potential for a unitary contract, the town's two residential haulers, Waste Industries and Waste Management, are "now talking about pay-as-you-throw within individual contracts."

"Before there wasn't an indication that they would put pay-as-you-throw in an individual system, but now there is." Profeta noted that the two haulers might be able to get the town to 80% pay-as-you-throw throw individual contracts — not the 100% that a unitary contract would create.

"I don't recommend that we take the unitary contract off the table," Profeta told Patch. "Clearly, it has motivated people to go in the direction of pay-as-you-throw."

"There are a bunch of things to consider," added Profeta. "A unitary contract that is mandatory, or an option in the individual system that would get smaller percentages and the environmental benefit goes down. But I'm also sensitive to the fact that some people have reacted negatively because they think the town is pushing this on them. I don't want to be associated with the sense that it's being forced down people's throats."

"That kind of pushback should be taken into account. That's my recommendation to new Township Committee." (Profeta will be retiring from the Township Committee as of Dec. 31, 2011.)

"We're going to talk to Waste Management in a week," Profeta said on Dec. 12. "We will see where they are going with it. The new Township Committee will have to decide whether to put out an RFP or not. My recommendation is that the Township Committee go down that road but not commit to it."

"The Township Committee should play it by ear."