CASTLETON CORNERS — A new garbage bin aims to make it easier to toss trash into it instead of on Staten Island's streets.
The city installed a test of a new design for a garbage bin with a wide net and reflectors installed on the top to catch garbage thrown from cars into it, Councilman Steven Matteo announced.
"Reminiscent of the successful anti-litter campaign years ago, this wastebasket invites people to 'pitch in' and throw their garbage into it instead of onto our streets, grass or parks," Matteo said in a statement.
"It has shown promise in our early test run, and we tweaked the design to make it even more effective. As I have said before, we need to use every tool available and search for creative solutions to combat littering, which tarnishes our beautiful borough and erodes our quality of life."
The bin was designed by non-profit Where to Turn and local artist Scott LoBaido, who's known for painting American flags around the country and installing a giant pro-Trump "T" on a Castleton Corners lawn.
A prototype was installed last week at the "litter hot spot" of North Gannon and Bradley avenues and will remain there for at least a month, Matteo said.
The bin will periodically be emptied by Matteo's "clean team," and he tweeted out that days after it was installed the bin was already half-full.
Two days into our test run on North Gannon, the area is litter-free & our prototype wastebasket is already half full pic.twitter.com/LyY1OOS4Su
— Steven Matteo (@StevenMatteo) October 10, 2016
After the month-long pilot program, Matteo said he'll discuss expanding it with Sanitation Department Commissioner Kathryn Garcia.
Since he took office, Matteo along with other elected officials in the borough has worked on efforts to clean up the litter on the borough's streets and sidewalks, including starting dedicated clean-up crews to respond to trouble spots.
Last year, the City Council gave a $206,000 grant to Where to Turn to clean up litter, debris and graffiti around Staten Island.
