Following a barrage of calls, voicemails and emails from Wareham residents frustrated with the new trash plan, town officials are considering ways the plan’s financial burden might be reduced for some individuals. 

Under the new trash plan — made necessary after the long-standing free waste disposal deal arranged as part of a waste district with Marion and Carver came to an end last year — residents can now choose to pay for transfer station stickers or the town’s curbside pick-up.

Transfer station stickers cost $125 for the first vehicle and $60 for an additional vehicle. The yearly price for curbside pick-up will be $365.

But many residents — including seasonal residents and those with other means of disposing of their trash — have expressed displeasure at being forced to pay for services they will not use. Some seniors have also expressed concerns about having to pay higher rates for trash disposal.

During the board’s Feb. 9 meeting, Town Administrator Derek Sullivan outlined three broad approaches to cost reduction for the Board of Selectmen to weigh-in on. 

The first method would be a discount for qualifying seniors, starting at either age 65 or 70. Sullivan said other towns frequently include an income or assets qualification as well. For example, some towns extend the discount to seniors who qualify for 41C elderly persons tax exemptions. 

Currently, 136 people in Wareham qualify for the 41C exemption, Sullivan said. He recommended extending a $120 discount on curbside pick-up to qualifying seniors, meaning the annual cost would be $245. Transfer station stickers could be reduced by half to $62.50, Sullivan said.

To address seasonal residents’ concerns, Sullivan said it might be possible to apply the same discounts he outlined for qualifying seniors if trash services were only available to those residents for six months — for example, from April 1 to Sept. 30. 

Finally, Sullivan said it’s possible the town could follow in other communities’ footsteps and extend “an abatement for other means of disposal” — assuming a person could provide proof of a valid alternative to the town’s trash services. With this option, people would have 30 days to apply for the abatement after they received their bill.

Sullivan cautioned that he could not give exact numbers for what would happen with any outlined approach.

The board did not commit to a particular approach. Instead, members said they would continue to reflect and discuss options.

“We’ve got a lot of stuff to go over,” Selectman Alan Slavin said. “It’s going to take more than just this meeting to do it.” 

Slavin also emphasized it would be “virtually impossible” to please everyone.

Additionally, the deadline to opt-out of curbside trash pickup has been extended to Feb. 15.