Recycling?

[Mamaw]

Perhaps I am missing something but our garbage company( yes I have garbage pick up because of a handicap) they offer to pick up your recybles for a price as I was sitting here a recylble truck picked them up around noon another truck will pickup garbage. I guess not putting them in the landfill is great put if two trucks are running neighborhoods this seem defeating.

[PrincessPerky]

you can usually recycle em yourself for free.

oh handicap, might want to see if you can get a friend to help, separate out the cans and you might get money back

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

I subscribed to the service for a couple of years when my neighborhood was used as a test for the program in my city. I paid because I wanted to encourage my city to provide easy recycling programs. I wanted people to see the blue boxes at curbside and begin to catch on to the idea that recycling is normal, that they, too, could do it. When enough people participate in the program, the the recyclables themselves could pay for the program and make the use of a truck for collection justifiable.

However, after a couple years, I gave up on paying for curbside service. Now I just walk my recyclables up to the collection dumpsters three blocks away when I go on my nightly walk. Sometimes if I will be driving by there, I will put larger item such as large flattened boxes in the back of the car to drop off as I drive by.

[Mamaw]

I am not talking about me because whether or not I use the truck ( I don' t I use the garbage) a recyclable truck is still coming down the street to pick up other subscribers. My point was if the company has to run two big trucks down the streets on all the streets of subscribers it seems to off set the good of recycling.

[momof1in150]

They need to keep the recycling and regular trash separate. They can't do that in the trucks that they have. Either way they would have to make two separate trips to pick up the trash and recycling so they have two different trucks.

[PrincessPerky]

if more folk participated you can make money on it.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Mamaw, I did get your point. I would be skeptical too. That is part of why I did not continue my paid participation in our program but, instead, try to walk the recycling to the collection point myself. However, if enough people would participate, the program could pay for it self and off-set the use of fuel, materials and labor, by a second truck.

I have seen--but I forget where, single trucks that do handle both recycling and regular trash bound for a dump or incinerator. They had internal divisions within the track and workers had to throw recycling and trash into different sections. In fact, they had sections for different types of recycling. Must have been in one of the suburbs here. One town here was very early to offer public recycling (late 70's I think) collection, so it might be in that town.

[Johansen8]

It actually takes more energy to recycle most things (plastic, paper, steel) than it does to get it from its natural source. The only exception is aluminum, which takes a phenomenal amount of energy to be extracted from bauxite.

The best reasons to recycle, then, would be that it generates jobs in the community, and reduces environmental damage by tree felling and mining. If we had more environmentally friendly ways of generating electricity, recycling would be even better.

[mom-from-missouri]

I am not talking about me because whether or not I use the truck ( I don' t I use the garbage) a recyclable truck is still coming down the street to pick up other subscribers. My point was if the company has to run two big trucks down the streets on all the streets of subscribers it seems to off set the good of recycling.

In my old town it was also a service you paid for. But, the trash truck pulled a trailer that the recycleables went into--so, fuel was saved.

[JeanneElle]

It actually takes more energy to recycle most things (plastic, paper, steel) than it does to get it from its natural source. The only exception is aluminum, which takes a phenomenal amount of energy to be extracted from bauxite.

The best reasons to recycle, then, would be that it generates jobs in the community, and reduces environmental damage by tree felling and mining. If we had more environmentally friendly ways of generating electricity, recycling would be even better.

True... hopefully they can implement cost reduction strategies that will offset this. Meanwhile we can help by continuing to recycle to ease the burden on our landfills.

Where I live (Vancouver, BC) curbside pick-up is included in our taxes. I think this is beneficial because if the truck comes by anyway, and all your neighbours have their blue boxes out, you're more likely to recycle as well...

[Johansen8]

True... hopefully they can implement cost reduction strategies that will offset this. Meanwhile we can help by continuing to recycle to ease the burden on our landfills.

Where I live (Vancouver, BC) curbside pick-up is included in our taxes. I think this is beneficial because if the truck comes by anyway, and all your neighbours have their blue boxes out, you're more likely to recycle as well...

Yeah...Im looking forward to hearing more recycle ideas

[jamiefic]

We've always taken our recycling to the bin ourselves too...on the way to or from other errands. Now we have one right by our house (walking distance).

[bqmother]

I take our recyclables to the nearest collection center about every second week, on my way to shop for groceries. I'm trying to cut down on bags and other containers that need to be recycled. Right now, newspapers and laundry supply containers seem to be the biggest culprits. It would be great if there were a refill station for detergents so you could reuse your own bottles! (I do get the really huge bottles with spouts so that I can refill my small (and easy-to-handle!) container, which slows the # of bottles, but doesn't eliminate them!
I'm also planting several gardens around my house, mostly with vegs and herbs. That should cut down on cans and jars from the store!

[Caoineag]

Wow, I feel lucky. Every place I lived had recycle and trash pickup as part of the taxes. I was cranky the one time I lived in an apartment complex and they didn't have a recycle bin (they eventually corrected this shortcoming). Our current city has a trial composting program going on and its going so well that they may expand it soon.

[disneysteve]

I am not talking about me because whether or not I use the truck ( I don' t I use the garbage) a recyclable truck is still coming down the street to pick up other subscribers. My point was if the company has to run two big trucks down the streets on all the streets of subscribers it seems to off set the good of recycling.

That isn't true at all. Picking up (and then selling) the recycled materials earns towns millions and millions of dollars. I've posted before about the RecycleBank program that we got last year where we live. Not only do they pick up our recyclables but they pay us rewards based on how much we recycle. They're able to give us all special bins, run the trucks, pay out the rewards and still make a huge profit. Also, by increasing recycling, they decrease what they have to spend in landfill fees, saving even more money.

What I don't understand is why they would possibly charge you to pick up your recyclables. That's a rip-off because they're turning around and selling that material for a profit.