If all goes as scheduled, Amherst residents will begin receiving their new garbage totes as early as Wednesday, Charles Moses, the town’s acting senior refuse control officer, said Friday.

Deliveries of the two-wheel, covered garbage containers will begin in rural north Amherst and move southward throughout May. Town officials hope to hand out all 34,000 of the totes by Memorial Day, Moses said.
Amherst bought the totes, or rollout carts, with the proceeds of a $1.7 million bond in hopes of controlling a growing rat menace, especially along the town’s borders with Cheektowaga and Buffalo.

Buffalo saw a drastic reduction in rodent complaints after distributing the totes in 2001.

But then the rats apparently followed the food source to the suburbs, where garbage was still in plastic bags. Initially, residents will receive a single, 95-gallon tote per household. Once the first round of deliveries is completed, residents can request smaller, 65-gallon versions of the wheeled carts — or they may order a second large tote for $50, Moses said.

The town’s $212 annual garbageremoval fee will not be affected, Moses said.

http://www.buffalonews.com/104/story/60124.html