Milpitas will stop sending garbage to the Newby Island Landfill and Resource Recovery Park on the San Jose-Milpitas border late next year.

The City Council unanimously voted Tuesday to contract with Waste Management Inc., which operates the Guadalupe Recycling and Disposal Facilities in San Jose. That is the landfill where Milpitas’ trash will end up starting in September 2017.

The council’s action signals a possible end to the city’s 30-year relationship with Republic Services, a relationship that occasionally has been mired in conflict and litigation.

Waste Management was one of two companies that submitted a proposal for a 20-year contract to dispose of Milpitas’ garbage. The other was GreenWaste Recovery.

Rob Hilton, vice president of Walnut Creek-based HF&H Consultants, told the council a committee comprised of city employees gave Green Waste a rating score of 85.8 and Waste Management a 78.3 out of 100.

“They are pretty comparable,” Hilton said, but Waste Management will charge less — $42.78 per ton of garbage compared to $64.96 by Green Waste.

As a result, Hilton said, Waste Management’s contract would save the city between $350,000 to $650,000 in disposal costs depending on who is selected as the collector.

At a special meeting in January, the council and public heard representatives of both companies make their pitches.

The city sought a 20-year contract with a company that doesn’t require a minimum amount of trash to dispose, offers a nearby landfill or transfer station, and provides free-dump days to customers.

At the recommendation of HF&H Consultants, the city decided to pursue separate contracts for garbage disposal and for garbage collection.

The contract for garbage collection will be the most lucrative, by far. It’ll account for about 80 percent of the city’s total garbage costs.

Waste Management also has submitted a bid for that contract, as have GreenWaste Recovery, California Waste Solutions, Garden City Sanitation, Green Team and Republic Services.

The council is expected to receive presentations from the collection companies in April or May.

Contact Aliyah Mohammed at amohammed@themilpitaspost.com or 408-262-2454 or follow her on twitter.com/Aliyah_JM. Visit us on our social media sites at facebook.com/MilpitasPost and twitter.com/MilpitasPost.