Garbage rate should be 25% lower in half of the cities, says consultancy

Half of the city councils in Brazil have not yet structured the charging for waste treatment separately from other taxes, as required in the National Solid Waste Policy, a law sanctioned in 2010. According to a study by infrastructure consultancy Una Partners, if the charge is made via basic sanitation bills, the value drops by at least 25%.

The consultancy says that this drop is due to the fact that, by linking the solid waste charge to the water and sewage bill, defaults and collection costs fall.

"Efficiency in collection is decisive to reconcile the financial sustainability of solid waste systems and reasonable tariffs, that is, without costing the user as much", says Daniel Keller, managing partner of Una Partners.

As examples of cities that have already adopted the model, Keller cites the São Paulo municipalities of Guarulhos and Araraquara.

He states that another advantage of linking the charge to sanitation bills is the reduction of the "pain of payment" effect. In other words, because it is easier and simpler to pay for everything together, the citizen has "less negative experience".

"Thus, co-billing works well by combining efficiency in charging and reducing commercial costs with a contained impact on the population, creating conditions for sustainable service provision", says Keller.