Sacramento city employees will inspect your trash this summer

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Sacramento residents will start to see workers in neon yellow vests going through their garbage bins this week. 

The city’s code enforcement officers will lift the lid on bins from 4,800 randomly selected households through September to make sure that they’re complying with Senate Bill 1383. It’s a state law that requires businesses and property owners to separate their organic waste from the landfill. 

Residents in the city a allotted one grey trash bin, one brown organic waste bin and one blue recycling can. 

Jesa David, a city spokesperson, said staff will briefly lift the lid, snap a picture of its contents and either leave a “Great job” or a “Let’s sort this out” tag. 

“There are no penalties of any kind as a result of this,” David said. “It's simply providing information and making sure everyone has the resources and are aware of how to sort their waste correctly.” 

If enforcement officers notice a high level of waste contamination, they may act further.

“If someone has problems with a lot of contamination, then we would want to address that issue,” David said. “If there’s a lot of recycling in their garbage, then maybe they need another recycling can, which is very inexpensive.” 

Ultimately, David said the city sees this as an opportunity to further educate households on proper waste management. 

That said, some residents aren’t thrilled with the idea of the city going through their trash, such as J.D. Fontaine.

“I think it could be invasive. It could lead to other things,” he said. “What if you see something that shouldn’t be there? What do you do with that information? Who do you give it to? It’s kind of a Big Brother deal. 

Fontaine said he supports sorting waste properly, but finds the surveillance to be a slippery slope. 

“I understand the concept, sure, but penalizing me or anybody else because I make a mistake or don’t do it is not what I’m looking for in my government,” he added.

David said some residents have expressed privacy concerns, but stressed they don’t have much to worry about. 

“We just reassure people that we're not keeping any records tied to that home or looking at any further than just the, just a visual check of the container,” David said. “We're not touching any contents, and just leaving a tag.”

This is the second time the city has gone through residents’ trash. Last year, the city found one of the main sources of contamination was plastic film in the recycling can. 

“That can lead to a lot of problems at the recycling sorting facility, which can lead to higher costs for disposal,” David explained. 

Residents should expect to see city employees wearing their high visibility vests out and about between the hours of 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. on trash days through September. More information on the inspections is available here.