I was reading my local Independent Newspaper today and found two articles on recycling/trash in my local area. One was about my city and one about the city next door.
In my city, Livermore, CA, the monthly rates for trash pick-up have been approved to go up next July (~$3.00 per household.) That was the main genesis for the article, but the interesting part was the change for commercial customers. As part of the negotiations between the company and the City’s Public Works Manager, drop box waste fees are now based on weight as well as frequency of servicing. Savings incentives were put in place for less material or lower service frequency. Rather than one price fits all, reward those who reduce waste. I like it. Seems this might be a good idea for local residents too. I know that since we started paying attention here at home, we have significantly reduced what we contribute to the landfill. Some weeks, sometimes several weeks in a row, we don’t even bother to take the non-recycling garbage can to the curb. But it takes some effort and commitment. A little incentive could go a long way.
In my neighboring city, Pleasanton, CA, changes are being made for residential customers. While both cities have curbside recycling, to my surprise, Pleasanton’s old system was a two can system: one for yard waste and one for everything else. Recyclable material was sorted out from the garbage at a facility. While quite convenient for the customer, I can’t even imagine how difficult and inefficient that would be at the sorting center.
Pleasanton implemented the program in October with the intent of capturing more recyclable material. Their new program sounds very similar to Livermore’s program: a can for yard/food waste, a can for all other recyclable materials and third can for the rest. This makes a lot of sense to me. Next step is for Pleasanton to increase its list of recyclable materials to be as impressive as the recyclable materials list is for Livermore.
Although recycling is not equal across this nation, it appears that in my local area, things are starting to unify.
So that’s what’s happening around here, what’s going on in your neck of the woods?
Over the last few years, my awareness of our impact on the environment has grown into a passion for change. We are the caretakers of this magnificent, fragile planet. Its survival, and ours, depends on each of us. Eco-Footprint Solutions was spawned from this passion.