&EPA
            United States
            Environmental Protection
            Agency
              Off ice of Sol id Waste
              Washington, D.C. 20460
January 1989
EPA&30-SW-89-OU
Recycling
Works!

State and Local Solutions
to Solid Waste Management
Problems
            This booklet is printed on recycled paper.

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Contents
                                           PAGE

     Recycling Works:
          An Overview	3

     Alabama
          Statewide used oil recycling program .. 7

     Austin, Texas
          Voluntary curbside recycling
          program	  11

     Hamburg, New York
          Mandatory curbside recycling
          program	  15

     Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
          Three-phased recycling program	17

     New Jersey
          Statewide mandatory
          recycling program	20

     Oregon
          Statewide voluntary recycling
          program	23

     Queens Village (Phila.), Pennsylvania
          Voluntary urban "block corner"
          recycling program	26
                                       PAGE

San Jose, California
      Comprehensive waste reduction
      program	29

Santa Monica, California
      Multi-faceted program, including
      apartment house recycling zones	32

Sauk County, Wisconsin
      Rural area, nonprofit, privately-run
      recycling program	35

Seattle, Washington
      Voluntary private sector recycling
      experiment	  37

University City, Missouri
      Leaf composting program	41

Wellesley, Massachusetts
      Drop-off recycling center	44

Wilton, New Hampshire
      Mandatory material separation at drop-
      off center	47

Information
      List of state recycling offices	50

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 Recycling Works: An Overview
The average American pro-
duces more than 1,000 pounds
of trash a year! As this prolifer-
ation of waste continues,
places to dispose of it are
dwindling. To avoid a crisis,
everyone needs to accept re-
sponsibility for reducing the
amount of garbage they throw
away. However, it is often the
job of state and local govern-
ments to deal with their citi-
zens' trash.

Every state has at least one au-
thority, agency, commission,
or department responsible for
managing the disposal of re-
fuse generated by its citizens.
Usually, local authorities han-
dle  collection and disposal, but
private companies are also fre-
quently utilized to manage
trash.

In some jurisdictions, trash ap-
pears to be a minor problem
and is easily buried in a land-
fill.  But for others, trash dis-
posal has become a critical
problem. Landfills are rapidly
filling and closing. Incinerators
are  not able to safely handle
enough of the trash that is pro-
duced. To cut down on the
amount of trash needing dis-
posal, many communities are
turning to recycling and dis-
covering that it works!
This booklet provides informa-
tion about successful recycling
programs initiated by state and
local agencies. It also de-
scribes private recycling ef-
forts and joint recycling ven-
tures of government and
businesses. Each success story
is designed to provide basic in-
formation to help you as you
consider various recycling op-
tions in your community.

A NATIONAL PROBLEM
As a nation, we are producing
an ever-increasing amount of
municipal trash. Referred to as
the throwaway society, we
produce almost twice as much
solid waste as other developed
countries. Our current rate of
160 million tons per year could
fill a convoy of 10-ton trash
trucks  145,000 miles long—
enough to circle the equator
nearly six times! To make mat-
ters worse, the amount of re-
fuse generated in the United
States is projected to increase
about 20 percent by the year
2000.
      Total United States
       Waste Disposal,
      in Millions of Tons
                     192.7
          157.7
  1960
1986
                    2000
                    (projected)
Currently, the most common
form of waste management is
disposal in landfills. We landfill
80 percent of our municipal
waste. We incinerate 10 per-
cent and recycle only another
10 percent. Yet landfills can no
longer be relied upon as our
main waste management alter-
native.

Landfills do not last forever.
Many landfills are nearing or
have already reached capacity;
others are closing or have
closed because they cannot op-
erate within new safety
standards. Furthermore, new
landfill locations are very diffi-
cult to find.

The lack of landfill space and
the growing volume of waste
have created a waste manage-
ment nightmare for some com-
munities. Increased tipping
fees and the need to transport
waste to another county, an-
other municipality, or even an-
other state have caused costs
to soar. Wast.e collection,
transportation, and disposal
costs have risen to over $100 a
ton in some communities.
Morris County, New Jersey,
for instance, pays over $116 a
ton to get its waste to a Penn-
sylvania site.

But does it make sense to land-
fill or burn all of our trash? A
sizeable portion of what we
throw away contains valuable
resources—metals, gjass, pa-
per, wood, and plastic—that
can be reprocessed and used
again.
                                                            The garbage barge, Mobro, illus-
                                                            trated just how hard it can be to dis-
                                                            pose of garbage. The Mobro traveled
                                                            on a six-month odyssey of over 6,000
                                                            miles, including six states and three
                                                            other countries, before it found a
                                                            home—in New York, where it came
                                                            from!

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INTEGRATED WASTE MANAGEMENT
Many states and local govern-
ments are moving to prevent
massive waste handling prob-
lems. Some are just beginning
to evaluate the adequacy of
their current waste manage-
ment programs. Others are
considering or implementing
an integrated solid waste man-
agement approach. A number
                 of agencies have recognized
                 the value of including recycling
                 as part of their solid waste
                 management programs. In
                 fact, about 8,000 recycling pro-
                 grams are working to reduce
                 the volume of waste in the
                 United States. Recycling can
                 play a much larger role in
                 waste management programs.
         An Integrated Waste Mangement Solution
  As state and local governments
  plan for and implement inte-
  grated waste management, they
  usually consider a hierarchy of
  methods: reduce, recycle, incin-
  erate, and landfill. Reducing
  waste—preventing it from need-
  ing to be dealt with at all—is
  generally the most favored man-
  agement tool. Recycling—next
  in order of preference—helps to
  divert wastes from landfills and
  incinerators and provides for
  the reuse of resources. Inciner-
                 ating waste is next in the hier-
                 archy. Incineration reduces vol-
                 ume and can recover energy,
                 but may have some risks associ-
                 ated with it. Landfilling, while
                 necessary to handle some  .
                 wastes, is the least preferred
                 waste management method.
                 Landfills are very eostly and
                 may involve some risks. In
                 most communities, locating
                 landfill and incinerator sites is a
                 problem as well.
J                                    INCINERATE
                                   refuse, preferably
                                   th energy recovery
    REDUCE
the amount of waste
   generated
                 RECYCLE    If \\   LANDFILL
               as much trash as U )) remaining portions
                 possible     vX^of the waste stream
Why Recycle?
Recycling reduces the amount
of waste that needs to be bur-
ied in a landfill or incinerated.
This reduction in volume may
result in reduced disposal costs
and add to the useful life ex-
pectancy of a landfill. And re-
cycling puts discarded material
to valuable use, cutting down
on litter and conserving natural
resources. In some localities,
recycled materials are sold,
benefiting the recycling pro-
gram.

A Recycling Component
Adding a recycling component
to an existing municipal solid
waste system is a challenging
process. To begin,  your state
or community should consider
the following approaches:

• Analyze the contents and
  source of your waste.
• Learn about existing waste
  disposal and collection sys-
  tems, including their costs
  and capabilities.
• Determine to what degree
  recycling is already being
  conducted in your state or
  community.
• Identify public attitudes
  about recycling.
• Study which recycling op-
  tions might best meet your
  special needs.
• Explore existing markets for
  recovered materials and the
  possibility of finding new
  ones.

RECYCLING OPTIONS
THAT WORK
Recycling programs come in
many shapes and sizes. The
type of recycling program you
choose should be designed to
meet your community's needs.
For example, consider what
kind of collection system
would be the most expedient,
the most convenient to citi-
zens, and ultimately the most
successful. And does it make
sense in your community to
target specific wastes—office
paper, yard clippings, plastic
soft drink bottles?

Collecting Recyclables
For citizens, the most conveni-
ent kind of collection is curb-
side collection. To make col-
lection even handier, some
communities provide house-
holders with special containers
for separated wastes. Some

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neighborhood pickups are
combined with regular garbage
collection; others use separate
collection systems. A number
of communities offer incen-
tives like cash or gifts to coop-
erating households. While
curbside collection may be
costly, the success rate may
make it worthwhile, especially
in populous areas. In highly ur-
banized areas, apartment
house and office building col-
lection systems can work well,
too. And mandatory systems
may yield more recyclable ma-
terials than voluntary pro-
grams.

In many communities, drop-off
centers work. These centers
range from landfill locations,
where people or machines sort
recyclables, to "theme cen-
ters." For example, the Fort
Seminole Recycling Center in
Tallahassee uses a frontier fort
motif and buys back recycla-
bles. Financial incentives or
contributions to charity en-
courage participation in other
places. A number of communi-
ties locate drop-off centers in
convenient spots like shopping
malls; some centers are even
mobile. Often, centers are run
by private groups or as joint
private-public enterprises.

Obviously, most drop-off cen-
ters are cheaper to operate
than curbside collection sys-
tems. However, drop-off cen-
ters typically yield less waste
for reuse.

Choosing Recyclables

What is in a typical trash can in
your community? If it is any-
thing like the national average,
you can expect the bulk to be
paper and yard waste. News-
papers are easily recycled.
Yard clippings and leaves can
be composted and used for
landscaping. Businesses
around the country are recy-
cling computer paper and other
high-grade paper, cardboard,
and glass. And clean wood
wastes can be processed into
usable lumber. Of course, met-
als, such as aluminum, are val-
uable commodities as well.
   What's Recyclable in the Waste Stream?
   CONSTRUCTION
    WASTE, TIRES
                            PLASTICS, DRINK
                                BOTTLES
Reprocessed for Pressed
Board, Roads, and Other
 Construction Projects
                           Reprocessed for Auto
                             , Fiberfill, Strapping
  ALUMINUM CANS
                                YARD WASTE
  Reprocessed for Can
   Sheet & Castings
                             Composted for
                              Landscaping
   OTHER METALS
Cleaned & Reprocessed
 as Scrap & Structural
       Products
                           Refilled or Gullet for
                              Jars, Bottles,
                           Construction Material
  FURNISHINGS AND
     CLOTHING
                            ANIMAL WASTE
                              Used as Fertilizer
Reused by Another
     Person
                    PAPER
          Mixed Paper, High-Grade Paper,
      	Newspaper. Cardboard	
       Reprocessed as Newsprint, Paperboard,
                   Insulation

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Citizen Participation

Encouraging participation to
increase the amount of re-
covered waste can be the
greatest challenge to any recy-
cling program. There are many
ways to increase recovery and
participation rates. Many com-
munities have active promo-
tional campaigns. Providing
special containers for recycla-
bles seems to help, too. Some
places have chosen mandatory
over voluntary programs. Oth-
ers rely on voluntary efforts,
but use creative approaches to
boost participation.

Incentives have been initiated
in a number of com-
munities. For instance,
Rockford, Illinois, has
incorporated a weekly garbage
lottery award of $1,000 to any
resident whose inspected trash
bags are free of newspapers
and aluminum cans. Camden,
New Jersey, hopes that, fol-
lowing the first three years of
its recycling program, profits
can be returned to the public in
the form of improved services
and new community projects.
As recycling programs grow
and ensure a steady volume of
recovered materials, new mar-
kets evolve. For example,
New Jersey's new mandatory
program has spurred develop-
ment of new glass cullet, used
paper, and aluminum plants
within the state.

Marketing Recovered
Material

Identifying and developing
markets for recovered mate-
rials is another major challenge
for state and local recycling
programs. A recycling market
is any source of demand for
waste materials. To find the
most suitable markets, many
communities develop market-
ing plans. A typical plan may
address the availability and lo-
cations of markets and the
types and grades, amounts,
specifications, transportation
requirements, and price-setting
mechanisms for a commu-
nity's recovered materials.
Services, such as storage and
processing, may also be fac-
tors to consider. Many com-
munities enter into contracts
with purchasers, even though
prices usually fluctuate. And
some programs market coop-
eratively with neighboring pro-
grams to cut marketing costs.

In 1987, New Jersey's Office
of Recycling published a guide
to marketing recyclable mate-
rials. The guide is one of sev-
eral available sources of useful
information on marketing re-
covered materials.

Developing markets is a con-
tinuing challenge to EPA,
states, communities, indus-
tries, and consumers. Demand
for recyclables needs to be
stimulated, marketplace gluts
need to be avoided, and indus-
tries, business, and household
consumers need to buy prod-
ucts made with recycled mate-
rials.

RECYCLING WORKS!

All around the country—in
communities such as yours—
recycling is working to reduce
the volume of trash in need of
disposal. Recycling is one key
part of your integrated waste
management system that
makes sense.

Each community has its own
unique waste problems that
call for special solutions. A
number of successful programs
are described on the following
pages to give you some ideas
as you plan your community's
recycling program. Some of
the success stories take place
statewide; most are local. Two
describe efforts of villages and
small towns to join together,
forming regional recycling pro-
grams. While some success
stories highlight curbside col-
lection,  others address unique
drop-off systems. Several in-
volve some private sector
sponsorship; while others are
totally run by private enter-
prises. A used oil program and
a leaf composting project are
highlighted here, too. What
they all  add up to is—
   RECYCLING WORKS!

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 Alabama
 Type of Program
 State Overview
 Background
Used oil collection.
  PROJECT
Alabama's borders extend
from the Tennessee Valley to
the Gulf of Mexico. With the
exception of Birmingham and
metropolitan areas around
Mobile, Montgomery, and
Huntsville, Alabama is pre-
dominantly rural. About four
million people live in Alabama.
 recycled oil saves energy
Only about half of the nation's
used oil was recovered and
reused in 1977. The other half
was usually discarded, often to
the detriment of the environ-
ment.

In 1977, as part of a nationwide
effort to conserve energy,
Project ROSE was created.
ROSE stands for Recycled Oil
Saves Energy. Alabama recog-
nized that its citizens could sal-
vage millions of gallons of used
crankcase oil a year. This oil
would not be haphazardly
dumped. Furthermore, new
developments had made refin-
ing, processing, and reclaiming
used oil a feasible and attrac-
tive idea.

Annually the state generates
more than 17 million gallons of
used automotive oil and 7 mil-
lion gallons of used industrial
oil. Most of the industrial oil is
routinely recovered; however,
in establishing Project ROSE,
recovering used automotive oil
presented a great challenge:
Individuals who changed their
own motor oil needed to be
made aware of the hazards of
dumping it, and garages
needed reliable collection serv-
ices. Project ROSE was de-
signed to collect used oil from
individual, corporate, and mu-
nicipal consumers, garages,
and service stations for treat-
ment by a used oil processor.
 Alabamians recycled
 8.2 million gallons of
    used oil  in 1986.

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Program Description
Project ROSE is a nonprofit
conservation program initiated
by Alabama's Science, Tech-
nology and Energy Division,
Department of Economic and
Community Affairs, and spon-
sored by the University of Ala-
bama, The program's goal is to
protect the environment and
conserve a valuable resource.
To accomplish its goal, Project
ROSE officials assist do-it-
yourself used oil changers in
recycling used oil and provide
collection and recycling infor-
mation to used oil generators,
collectors, and recyclers.

To start Project ROSE, pilot
projects were conducted in
Tuscaloosa and Mobile.  These
cities were selected because of
their large volumes of available
used oil, the number of volun-
teer collection centers, and the
availability of collectors  and
recycling facilities. The chance
of success appeared promis-
ing.
The development of these proj-
ects required the workers to do
the following:

Conduct Surveys. Surveys
were conducted to provide
basic data from individuals
about whether they would re-
cycle; from service stations
about amounts, storage capaci-
ties, and collection services;
and from waste oil handlers
about volumes, incentives,
fees, and processors' availabil-
ity and capacity. The results of
the surveys showed a shortage
of collectors and collection
centers. The surveys pointed
the way for a local govern-
ment-sponsored program in
Tuscaloosa. And, since Mobile
had larger volumes of used oil
and a number of used oil col-
lectors, sponsorship by the pri-
vate sector was proposed.
Identify Sponsors. City,
county, civic groups, private
industry, and joint sponsorship
were explored as project spon-
sors. In Tuscaloosa, the city
sponsored the program; in
Mobile, private industry spon-
sored it.

Select from Alternative Collec-
tion Methods. Curbside collec-
tion, service station collection,
and consumer centers were
considered. In Mobile, collec-
tion centers were to supple-
ment curbside collection and
service station efforts.  In Tus-
caloosa, curbside pickup was
selected. One thousand gallons
of used oil a month were col-
lected this way from Tusca-
loosa.

Publicize the Program. News-
paper, radio, and television
ads were used and pamphlets
were distributed to promote
the projects. Pamphlets were
particularly useful to promote
curbside pickup.
Evaluate the Results. In Tusca-
loosa, a gain from 1,000 to
1,200 gallons of used oil a
month was documented during
the oil collection drive. In addi-
tion, more businesses re-
quested drums for collecting
used oil. Mobile's pilot project
resulted in an estimated
750,000 gallons of used oil
being reclaimed, an increase
from 300,000 in the previous
year.

Expand the Program. Project
ROSE expanded its collection
programs for used oil to 12 ad-
ditional areas. Sponsors
ranged from the League of
Women Voters and Alabama
Conservancy to city sanitation
departments and private busi-
nesses.

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 What Makes
 Alabama's Program
 Unique?

 From two pilot used oil proj-
 ects, Alabama's Project ROSE
 has grown to national promi-
 nence. Currently, three types
 of used oil programs comprise
 Project ROSE: curbside col-
 lection, collection centers, and
 drum placement.

 The curbside collection pro-
 gram is primarily used and best
 suited for metropolitan areas in
 which consistent garbage col-
 lection is provided. Based on
 survey data, 70 percent of all
 respondents replied that they
 would save their used oil for
 recycling if it were picked up at
 their homes. The Cities of Bir-
 mingham and Tuscaloosa op-
 erate a curbside collection pro-
 gram for city residents served
 by curbside garbage collection.
 City garbage trucks, equipped
 with metal storage racks cost-
 ing $60 each, have been
 adapted to transport used oil
 deposited along the curbside.
 Used oil is stored during route
 collection and transferred to a
 holding tank at city facilities. A
 collector picks up this used oil
 and pays the cities at a price
determined by current market
 value.

A mass media campaign di-
rected toward the cities' resi-
 dents was found to be essential
 to the implementation of a
 curbside collection program.
 The media program helps to
 make residents aware of the
 service being provided to them
 by each city. The campaign also
 explains the hazards of im-
 proper disposal and outlines
 the procedures used and type
 of storage container needed for
 participation in the program.
 Media promotion has been
 maintained to ensure success
 and maximize program bene-
 fits.

 The Project ROSE collection
 center program consists  of
 service stations, garages, and
 automotive service centers
 which voluntarily accept do-it-
 yourselfers' used oil for recy-
 cling. These businesses rou-
 tinely collect used oil and prac-
 tice recycling to safely dispose
 of used oil while gaining a
 small profit from its sale. Once
 contacted by Project ROSE,
 most service stations and ga-
 rages accept used oil. The
 news media is informed about
 a service station's or garage's
participation as a Project
ROSE collection center.

Service stations that partici-
pate receive information  about
used oil collection and about
 recycling businesses operating
 as the Project ROSE used oil
 waste exchange. This informa-
 tion and other resources are
 available from Project ROSE.
 Future plans for Project ROSE
 include a statewide effort to
 contact all service stations, ga-
 rages, and automotive centers
 to inform them of the waste ex-
 change services the program
 provides.

 The third type of collection
 program is the drum placement
 program, in which 55-gallon
 drums are provided for do-it-
 yourself used oil collection.
 This program operates in rural
 areas where there are few serv-
 ice stations or garages. Drums
 are located on the premises of
 cooperating businesses and
 small government agencies.

 Information about collection
 center locations is provided to
 people who call Project ROSE
 on one of two toll-free, in-state
 hotlines.

 Community awareness and
 statewide recognition of Proj-
 ect ROSE are essential to a
 successful recycling program.
Media—radio, television,
newspapers—are used exten-
sively to disseminate program
information and publicize the
 toll-free hotline numbers avail-
 able for residents seeking local
 collection center information.
 Materials describing Project
 ROSE and detailing the envi-
 ronmental preservation and
 energy conservation benefits
 of recycling are provided free
 upon request. Project ROSE
 also provides informational
 materials to businesses, civic
 groups, environmental organi-
 zations, trade associations,
 and state agencies to be in-
 cluded with business corre-
 spondence. A quarterly news-
 letter is distributed in Alabama
 and nationwide to used oil in-
 dustry members, state recy-
 cling agencies, and other per-
 sons and organizations which
 support the program.

 In addition, an audiovisual
 presentation is available for
 statewide distribution. De-
 signed for civic groups, envi-
 ronmental organizations, trade
 and business associations,
 schools, conferences, and
 workshops, this program pro-
 vides essential program infor-
 mation and encourages do-it-
 yourself recycling. The presen-
tation also assists communities
in organizing collection pro-
grams where none currently
exist.

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                                                                                                                  10
Obstacles Overcome       Program Contact
The chief obstacle overcome
by Alabama's Project ROSE
was getting do-it-yourself oil
changers to recycle. The pro-
gram provides information to
dp-it-your-selfers regarding en-
vironmentally safe used oil dis-
posal and recycling methods.
Moreover, the program makes
sure there is an available oil
collection  system for Alabami-
ans' used oil.

While it is not possible to de-
termine the amount of used
crankcase oil  collected from
do-it-yourselfers, Alabamians
recycled 8.2 million gallons of
used oil in 1986. Project ROSE
operates with city curbside
collection and 300 collection
centers. And it covers 53 of
Alabama's 67 counties. This
used oil recycling network
works!
For further information about
Alabama's program, contact
Janet Graham at (205) 348-4878
or write to

Janet H. Graham, Coordinator
Project ROSE
University of Alabama
Box 870203
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0203
                                Janet Graham suggests:
                                "Project ROSE has shown
                                that one person can make a
                                difference in saving energy
                                and protecting the
                                environment"

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                                                                                                                 11
Austin, Texas
Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
 Voluntary curbside recycling
 program.
The weekly tonnage of
 recyclables picked up
     by city crews
   increased by 14.5
  percent, from 110 to
  126 tons per week.
Austin, the capital of Texas,
has an area of over 160 square
miles. It is populated by almost
one-half a million people, who
dispose of almost 300,000 tons
of waste each year. The city
provides garbage collection to
more than 113,000 single-fam-
ily dwellings, while private
haulers collect from 65,000
households in multi-family
units and businesses. Two pri-
vate landfills and a municipal
landfill accept refuse. The mu-
nicipal landfill charge is only
$10 per ton. In addition, there
are two county-operated trans-
fer stations.
 In February 1977, the Austin
 Tomorrow Plan directed that
 the City of Austin seek envi-
 ronmentally sound methods of
 solid waste management. Rec-
 ognizing the benefits of alter-
 native disposal methods, the
 plan stated that waste recovery
 systems need not be financially
 self-sufficient. Program costs
 should be weighed against al-
 ternate costs of land disposal
 plus the environmental and so-
 cial costs of additional landfill
 capacity.

 In June 1981, a 20-year Solid
 Waste Management Plan was
 adopted by the city that called
 forlandfillmg, composting,
 transfer stations, resource re-
 covery (waste-to-energy), and
 recycling.

 In February  1982, a pilot curb-
 side recycling program was im-
 plemented in two neighbor-
 hoods including 3,000 homes.
 Due to its success, the service
 area was expanded in early
 1983 to 12,000 homes. During
 the second year, over 100 tons
per month of glass, news-
paper, and cans were col-
lected. In the fall of 1983, a
volunteer block leader pro-
gram was established, and five-
gallon plastic buckets were
made available to participants
through fire stations. Both the
dedication of block leaders and
the availability of containers
have contributed to increased
public awareness and partici-
pation in the curbside pro-
gram.

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                                                                                                                     12
Program Description
                                                             What Makes Austin's
                                                             Program Unique?
Austin's curbside recycling
program is voluntary. It serves
about 88,000 households, 75
percent of the collection serv-
ice area. Pickup is once a
week.

Participation is approximately
25 percent, and about 4 per-
cent of the recyclable material
is diverted from the landfill.
Color-mixed glass, aluminum
and steel cans, and newspa-
pers are picked up. A major lo-
cal company buys most of the
recyclable material.

Austin's million dollar annual
budget covers its entire waste
reduction program, including
curbside recycling. To offset
this cost, nearly a third of this
amount comes from the sale of
recovered material. The re-
mainder is received from user
and collection fees.

In addition to curbside recy-
cling, Austin sponsors other
recycling services.

Annual Christmas Tree Recy-
cling. About 22,000 trees were
reclaimed and chipped for
mulch and compost in 1987.
Municipal Landfill Recycling.
Approximately 40 tons per
month of appliances, bulky
metals, and other recyclables
are dropped off at the site and
recycled by private groups.

City Office Facility Recycling.
Approximately 10 tons of of-
fice paper is recycled per
month by private groups.

Private Drop-Off Site Recy-
cling. Six private newspaper
drop-off sites are strategically
placed around Austin for citi-
zens who do not receive curb-
side recycling service. At two
of these sites, glass and metal
are dropped off as well.

Buy-Back Recycling. Several
buy-back organizations in the
Austin area buy aluminum
cans, newspapers, cardboard,
glass, and bulky metal items.
Other organizations accept
used building materials,
clothes, appliances, and old
furniture for repair and reuse.

Home Chemical Collection.
This annual event collected
 168 barrels of assorted hazard-
ous materials in 1988, recycled
600 auto batteries and 2,600
gallons of used motor oil, and
directed 4,500 gallons of usable
paint to local housing rehabili-
tation projects.

Municipal Sewage Sludge Com-
posting. Presently, Austin's
Wastewater Utility composts
about 40 percent of its de-
watered sewage sludge, adding
wood chips from private tree
trimming companies and water
hyacinths used in the polishing
of wastewater effluent, to pro-
vide carbon for the composting
process. The finished compost
is used on municipal parks and
recreational areas.
One reason for the Austin pro-
gram's success is its block
leaders. The city is divided
into recycling districts of ap-
proximately 1,400 homes each.
A volunteer block leader is as-
signed 20 householders. Each
household is presented with in-
formation and encouraged to
recycle. Block leaders, during
home visits to their neighbors,
distribute recycling and com-
posting literature, recycling
pails, yard signs, and bumper
stickers. These good-will am-
bassadors show how to pre-
pare cans, bottles, and papers
for curbside collection.

Recycling Week is another
unique program. In 1988, the
week of September 11-17 was
selected to call public attention
to new developments in the
city's curbside recycling pro-
gram, and to recognize the in-
volvement of businesses,
schools, and citizen groups in
Austin's waste reduction ef-
forts. The city dropped its re-
quirement for the color-separa-
tion of glass containers
collected at the curb, simplify-
ing the role of the household
recycler. In addition, a new
campaign was launched to re-
cruit more than 1,000 block
leaders.

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                                                                                                                      13
                                                                                           Obstacles Overcome
A privately sponsored "Cash
for Trash" program went into
effect during Recycling Week,
offering a $100 prize each day
to a randomly selected house-
hold with recyclable materials
set out for curbside pickup.
Private industry and a leading
newspaper will provide contin-
uing sponsorship of "Cash for
Trash" as an ongoing incentive
to encourage curbside recy-
cling participation.

Keep Austin Beautiful pro-
grams involving Austin public
schools and the business com-
munity were also promoted
during Recycling Week. Mid-
dle schools and junior and sen-
ior highs began recycling
school paper and aluminum
cans on their campuses to
benefit their student activity
funds and to help the district
cut down on its disposal costs.
The program, supported by
private and public auspices,
honors the school with the
highest per capita recycling to-
tals at the end of the school
year. The Keep Austin Beauti-
ful Clean Recycler Program
serves to promote recycling
and responsible waste manage-
ment practices on the part of
Austin businesses. In addition,
a recycling forum included an
open discussion of Austin's fu-
ture prospects for alternative
waste reduction programs.

Public awareness and educa-
tion played a major part in the
activities of Recycling Week,
beginning with a press confer-
ence and mayoral proclama-
tion at City Council chambers.
Eleven articles on various as-
pects of recycling appeared in
five local newspapers. All
three major network television
stations added their support to
Recycling Week with coverage
of its highlighted programs and
events. Several local radio sta-
tions ran news items on Recy-
cling Week, using press re-
leases issued by Austin's
Public Information Office.
A public service ad featuring a
local musician was developed
to provide continuing rein-
forcement of the Recycling
Week message. The spot, pro-
moting the ease of curbside re-
cycling and the' 'Cash for
Trash" program, was carried
by four major local radio sta-
tions.

Since Recycling Week, the
Austin Curbside Recycling
Program has recorded daily,
weekly, and monthly highs in
material collections. On an av-
erage, the weekly tonnage of
recyclables picked up by city
crews increased by 14.5 per-
cent, from 110 to 126 tons per
week. Calls to the Waste Re-
duction Programs Recycling
Hotline increased from a daily
average of 25 to 35. Further-
more, 200 block leaders were
added to the program over a
two-week period.
Austin is not facing an immedi-
ate landfill crisis; in fact, land-
filling is still rather cheap.
Therefore, increasing partici-
pation rates and material vol-
umes is considerably more dif-
ficult. Austin's challenge is to
increase recycling to the point
that it is a cost-effective alter-
native to landfilling. Austin is
approaching this challenge,
confident that it will be met.

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Program Contact
                                                                                                         14
For further information about
Austin's program, contact
Alan Watts at (512) 472-0500 or
write to

Alnn Watts
Austin Recycling Program
Solid Waste Services Division
P.O. Box 1088
Austin, TX 78767-8844
    I
RECYCLES
                                                                                   Alan Watts advises other
                                                                                   city recycling program
                                                                                   managers to look ahead.
                                                                                   'There are more than 20,000
                                                                                   households participating in
                                                                                   our curbside program just
                                                                                   because they recognize its
                                                                                   long-term value to our
                                                                                   economy and environment.
                                                                                   It's this kind of commitment
                                                                                   from people taking the
                                                                                   initiative in  their homes,
                                                                                   workplaces, and in
                                                                                   community  life that we've
                                                                                   got to build  on to help us
                                                                                   avoid a garbage crisis
                                                                                   rather than confront one
                                                                                   after it arrives."

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                                                                                                            15
Hamburg, New York
Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
                            Program Description
Mandatory curbside pickup of
separated trash.
The Village of Hamburg, a
suburb of Buffalo, has a popu-
lation of 10,500. Its mandatory
program was enacted in 1981.
Hamburg's recycling effort be-
gan as a voluntary program
with citizens taking separated
newspapers, bottles, and cans
to a recycling center. From
there, local firms purchased
the material they recovered.

Through the efforts of a volun-
teer committee, residents were
surveyed and public hearings
were held to determine
whether to make recycling
mandatory. As a result, a law
was passed in 1981 that re-
quired separating and recy-
cling of waste material. Com-
pliance with the law after one
month was 85 percent; since
then, compliance has exceeded
95 percent.
Residents put out recyclables
on regular garbage collection
day. Newspapers are put into a
paper bag, bottles and cans
into another, and cardboard
into a third bag. Garbage
trucks pulling trailers for the
recyclables collect all the trash
on a single run. The trailers
filled with recyclables are
taken to a center operated by
an association for the retarded.
There, the material is sorted
for dealer pickup.

Recyclables represent 25 per-
cent of Hamburg's waste, by
volume. Recycling has re-
duced the need for landfills by
34 percent and saved as much
as $24,000 in tipping fees each
year.
Recycling has reduced
 the need for landfills
   by 34 percent and
   saved as much  as
$24,000 in tipping  fees
       each  year.

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                                                                                                               16
What Makes
Hamburg's Program
Unique?

Comply or else! While as many
as 98 percent of Hamburg's
residents cooperate, those who
do not are penalized. If a
household fails to separate all
of its recyclables, it gets only
one of its trash cans picked up.
This one empty can is marked
with an orange sticker which
serves as a reminder that gar-
bage must be separated. If the
problem persists, a warning
letter is sent. If the household
still does not comply, their gar-
bage is not picked up for a
week—a rare occurrence. Of-
fenders can be summoned to
court, but garbage cans not
picked up is considered a
greater punishment.
Obstacles Overcome      Program Contact
Hamburg has been successful
in finding markets. There is,
however, no assurance these
markets will be steady. Secur-
ing markets is a constant chal-
lenge. For instance, when the
newsprint market fell, the
town continued to pick up the
newspapers, taking what
money they could for them.
Hamburg has an agreement
with a paper company that
stipulates that the town gets
half if the price is more than
$40 a ton; if the price goes be-
low $40, the village receives
$20 a ton less than market
price with a $1 minimum. Even
at $1 a ton, the $10 a ton tip-
ping fee is saved.
For further information about
Hamburg's program, contact
Gerald Knoll at (716) 649-4953
or write to

Gerald E. Knoll
Superintendent of Public Works
100 Main Street
Hamburg, NY 14075
                                                          Jerry Knoll offers this
                                                          advice to small-scale
                                                          programs: "Recycling had
                                                          better save money. If not,
                                                          it's a tough idea to sell!
                                                          Moreover, if you're going to
                                                          recycle, make it mandatory.
                                                          Mandatory takes no more
                                                          time but reduces the waste
                                                          by greater amounts."

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                                                                                                                17
 Mecklenburg  County, North CaroSina
 Type of Program
 Community Overview    Background
                              Program Description
Comprehensive integrated
solid waste management, in-
cluding a three-phased recy-
cling program.
RECYCLE MOW
Mecklenburg County is a
growing area, spurred by the
economic development of its
principal city, Charlotte. Many
more people from other coun-
ties and states commute to
Charlotte for work and shop-
ping as well. By 2006, the cur-
rent population of 460,000 is
expected to increase by nearly 30
percent, with employment
increasing by almost 50
percent.

The City of Charlotte and
other municipalities provide
for the collection of waste from
its citizens, while Mecklenburg
County handles waste manage-
ment countywide.
 The one remaining county-run
 landfill is expected to be full by
 1991. It currently handles
 about half of the more than
 600,000 tons of solid waste
 produced annually. The other
 half is accepted at a private
 landfill. In 1986, only one per-
 cent of Mecklenburg County's
 waste was recycled.

 Locating new landfills has
 been difficult because of the
 decreasing amount of available
 land, unfavorable soil condi-
 tions, potential long-term envi-
 ronmental concerns, legal bar-
 riers, public opposition, and
 restrictive new permitting reg-
 ulations—not unlike other
 areas.

 As a result, Mecklenburg
 County developed a County
 Solid Waste Management
 Plan. The plan focuses on re-
 cycling, resource recovery,
 and landfilling. Since the plan
 was initiated, recycling activi-
 ties have steadily increased,
 two bond issues have been
 passed to support waste-to-en-
 ergy facilities and other solid
waste management programs,
and additional landfill areas are
being sought.
 The predominant avenue of
 waste disposal continues to be
 landfills. However, when the
 resource recovery and recy-
 cling programs are fully imple-
 mented, landfills will be used
 only for disposing of noncom-
 bustible and non-recyclable
 material, as well as residue
 from waste-to-energy facilities.

 Over the next five years, a
 three-phase recycling program
 will be carried out. A 20-year
 goal of 30 percent waste recy-
 cling has been set by the
 county.  Phase I of the recy-
 cling program is now under
 way. It includes multi-mate-
 rials curbside collection in se-
 lected municipalities and
 neighborhoods, a temporary
 processing center, and an ex-
 pansion  of already existing re-
 cycling efforts. These existing
 efforts include
• Two staffed and six un-
  staffed drop-off centers.
• "Metro-mulch," where
  clean yard waste is left for
  shredding and sale.
 The recycling center
took in almost $30,000
        last year.

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                                                                                                                      18
» Pilot curbside collection of
  glass, aluminum, newspa-
  pers, and plastic soft drink
  and liquor bottles.
» Cardboard recovery at the
  landfill.
» Metal recovery at the land-
  nil.
» White office paper collected
  from county and city offices.
• Development of efforts to
  increase public awareness
  and promote recycling.

Phase II will further expand
current recycling programs
and will add new ones.
• New drop-off centers.
« Curbside collection in all
  municipalities and construc-
   tion of a materials process-
   ing facility by 1989.
• Sorting operations for se-
   lected recyclables at all dis-
   posal sites.
» Separate yard waste collec-
   tion and recycling facility.

 Phase III will include new pro-
 grams, policies, and regula-
 tions that are still needed to
 achieve the 30 percent recy-
 cling goal.
 What Makes
 Mecklenburg County's
 Program Unique?

 The county's recycling budget,
 funded through landfill user
 fees, is over $1 million. This
 pays for a staff of 25 to admin-
 ister and operate its recycling
 program.

 The landfill's recycling center
 took in almost $30,000 last
 year. This revenue came from
* selling the newspaper, three
 colors of glass, aluminum
 cans, and plastic soft drink and
 liquor bottles collected at curb-
 side.

 To encourage recycling, land-
 fill users can dump free if they
 bring in a set amount of recycl-
 ables. With this incentive, indi-
 viduals and businesses bring in
 separated recyclables just to
 avoid the landfill fee. Further-
 more, when it was discovered
 that municipal "freeloaders"
 were mixing recyclable metals
 with their other wastes, these
 town collectors agreed to de-
 posit metals in separate bins.
 This move has increased reve-
  nues from recycled metals.
The county's tub grinder, lo-
cated at the landfill, shreds
bush and tree cuttings. The
shredded mulch is sold to the
public for about $4 per yard.
The county and cities use it for
landscaping.

Approximately one-fourth to
one-third of all residential
waste is yard waste—leaves,
grass, and other clippings—the
largest waste stream compo-
nent. A separate collection and
recycling program for yard
waste is just beginning.

The multi-materials curbside
recycling program, begun in
 1987, has an average participa-
tion rate of 74 percent. Ap-
proximately 9,100 homes par-
ticipate in the program. In the
 selected areas, newspaper,
glass containers, beverage
 cans, and plastic soft drink and
 liquor bottles are collected.
 Residents have a red plastic
 container for mixed bottles,
 cans, and jars; bundled or
 bagged newspapers are placed
 on top.

 Two types of trucks transport
 these materials to a processing
 facility. The trucks, operated
 by one person, have separated
 storage compartments for
 three different materials.
Plastic bottles are shredded by
a granulator donated by Coca-
Cola. The company has also
provided free consultations
and a guaranteed market for
the plastic.

An extensive public awareness
and promotion program has in-
cluded widely disseminated
and effective informational
materials, mass media support,
educational conferences, and
public events to spur recycling
participation. A volunteer
speakers' bureau uses an
audiovisual program for public
presentations. Volunteer citi-
zens and service organizations
are working with Mecklenburg
County and its municipalities
to make recycling work. The
public awareness success can
be measured by the high recy-
cling participation levels, the
approval of bonds for waste-
to-energy, and the commit-
ment of elected officials to help
meet Mecklenburg County's
waste reduction goals.

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                                                                                                                   19
 Obstacles Overcome
                              Program Contact
The most difficult hurdle the
recycling program has had to
clear is one of doubt that recy-
cling really works. It took sev-
eral years to secure start-up
funding for the recycling ex-
periment. With good planning
and public support,  the experi-
ment is now successful.

The City of Charlotte is even
taking on more responsibility
for ah expanded recycling
pickup program. Currently,
the pickup program is working
in a group of diverse neighbor-
hoods—rich and poor, young
and elderly, black and white.
Furthermore, the data from
this program have enabled the
managers to project tonnage
that can be expected from a
citywide program in Charlotte.
These data are being used for
accurate planning for a mate-
rials processing facility. Those
kinds of successes have helped
to gain the support of those
who doubted the value of recy-
cling.
The success of curbside recy-
cling has been attributed to
two key efforts: An intensive
public awareness campaign
and the receipt by each partici-
pating household of a red box
for indoor storage of mixed
cans and bottles. In addition to
a $99,000 annual public aware-
ness and education budget, pri-
vate contributions have paid
for printing of brochures and
other publications.

To complement the curbside
collection program, the Meck-
lenburg County recycling pro-
gram stresses the importance
of drop-off centers, commer-
cial recycling efforts, and com-
posting projects. And recy-
cling is only one part of an
even larger integrated waste
management scheme.
For further information about
Mecklenburg County's pro-
gram, contact Mecklenburg
County Recycling, at
(704) 336-2713 or write to

Recycling Division
Mecklenburg County Engineering
  Department
700 North Tryon Street
Charlotte, NC 28202
                                                                                         "Don't underestimate the
                                                                                         complexity of a recycling
                                                                                         program," warns Betsy
                                                                                         Dorn, who for five years led
                                                                                         the Mecklenburg County
                                                                                         recycling charge. "Even the
                                                                                         most successful residential
                                                                                         pickup program will need
                                                                                         to be bolstered with an
                                                                                         efficient commercial pickup
                                                                                         program and composting
                                                                                         and drop-off components to
                                                                                         reach a 30 percent
                                                                                         diversion goal."

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                                                                                                                20
New Jersey
Type of Program
State Overview
Background
Program Description
Mandatory recycling law.
New Jersey is comprised of 22
solid waste districts with dwin-
dling landfill capacity, particu-
larly in its highly urbanized
northern districts. Over 50 per-
cent of New Jersey's solid
waste is disposed of in Penn-
sylvania, Ohio, or Kentucky.
Several counties pay over $100
per ton to manage their trash.

In New Jersey, there are 567
municipalities with a popula-
tion of more than 7.5 million.
In 1976, as part of the amended
Solid Waste Management Act,
a statewide management plan
was developed. Each of the 22
districts is required to submit a
solid waste plan for state ap-
proval. Plans typically include
recycling programs, waste-to-
energy facilities, and landfills
designed to handle non-recycl-
ables and residual ash from
waste-to-energy plants.

New Jersey started an Office
of Recycling in 1982 under the
Recycling Act passed by the
legislature in 1981. The pro-
gram was funded by a state-
wide landfill surcharge of 12
cents a cubic yard. As of 1986,
about 11 percent of the total
solid waste was being recycled
by 424 of the reporting com-
munities. The recycling office
provides  grant money, based
on recycled tonnage, as an in-
centive to communities to par-
ticipate in the program and
document their recycling ef-
forts.
In 1987, New Jersey's manda-
tory recycling law went into ef-
fect. It requires each county to
develop and submit a recycling
plan as part of its solid waste
management plan. Following
approval by the New Jersey
Department of Environmental
Protection, each community
begins a recycling program
that recovers a minimum of 15
percent of recyclable material
in the first year. After one
year, the minimum increases
to 25 percent. According to the
law, at least three materials
must be recycled. Typically
these materials include news-
paper, aluminum cans, and
glass containers. As of Sep-
tember 1988, leaves are
banned from landfills, making
composting a high priority as
well.
     In counties with
   mandatory recycling
    programs, 25 to 30
     percent is being
         recycled.

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                                                                                                                      21
New Jersey, with its 25 per-
cent recycling goal and limited
landfill capacity, also counts
on waste-to-energy facilities to
manage the largest portion of
its waste stream. At least 11
large scale projects are cur-
rently planned.

Studies have shown that recy-
cling and energy recovery can
be compatible in New Jersey.
Removing recyclables from
burning can increase the heat
content of the remaining waste
and thus reduce the ash resi-
due. Recycling could also cut
capital costs significantly be-
cause the waste-to-energy fa-
cilities could be smaller.

In Warren County, a relatively
rural area, construction of a
400-ton-per-day facility and a
nearby landfill to hold its ash
residue and by-pass waste is
under way. Both projects will
comply with New Jersey
standards. The county has
agreed to accept waste from a
neighboring county as well.
What Makes New
Jersey's Program
Unique?

New Jersey's mandatory recy-
cling law provides for the fund-
ing of state, county, and mu-
nicipal efforts through a $ 1.50
per ton facilities surcharge.
Through this, an annual reve-
nue of $12 million is antici-
pated. This fund supports  New
Jersey's Office of Recycling,
which receives 8 percent of the
total amount annually to run
the program. Counties receive
7 percent for program grants
and also receive funding for
education programs. Munici-
palities receive 40 percent of
the fund in tonnage rebates. A
market development study to
focus on recyclables such  as
tires, paper, and plastic bever-
age containers was funded at
about $200,000.
    NJ Recycling Payouts

  40% Tonnage grants to
       counties and municipal-
       ities
  35% Low-interest loans to
       businesses; for research
       and market develop-
       ment
  10% Public education and
       awareness programs
   7% Administration
The law encourages industries
to purchase new recycling
equipment by allowing them to
receive a 50 percent tax credit.
Moreover, a number of the
law's provisions help stimulate
markets for recyclables. For
instance, by 1989, at least 45
percent of the amount of
money spent for paper pur-
chased by the state must be
spent for recycled paper. Fur-
ther, the State Department of
Transportation is encouraged
to use recycled material in its
asphalt. In addition, priority
must be given to using leaf
compost material in maintain-
ing public land.

Each county designates a recy-
cling coordinator and is re-
sponsible for plan develop-
ment. Municipalities have
additional responsibilities.
They must
• Designate a recycling coor-
  dinator.
• Provide for collection.
• Require source separation of
  its designated recyclables.
• Develop recycling plans for
  new development.
• Submit tonnage grant re-
  ports.
• Publicize the recycling pro-
  gram at least every six
  months.
• Require separate leaf collec-
  tion during fall months.

By April  1990, the first report
to the New Jersey Legislature
will document progress under
the law and make recommen-
dations about continuing the
recycling surcharge.
                                 8% Program grants for
                                     counties

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                                                                                                                  22
Obstacles Overcome
                             Program Contact
New Jersey's main obstacle
has been to get 21 county solid
waste plans submitted and ap-
proved, and then to get 567
municipalities to comply. To
overcome this obstacle, the
state recycling coordinators
meet with the county coordina-
tors at least every other
month. In turn, the county co-
ordinators meet with their mu-
nicipal counterparts. This kind
of network helps to stimulate
activity, encourages interpro-
gram support, and promotes
information exchange. And the
network helps to boost county
and municipal participation.
More and more county and
community programs are join-
ing the recycling effort. Before
the program was mandatory,
the tonnage grants provided a
strong incentive to recycling.
The tonnage grant program has
also paid off as more complete
waste data are collected, help-
ing the state plan ahead.

Some counties have already
enacted mandatory  recycling
programs. In these counties,
25 to 30 percent of waste is
being recycled. Large drops in
their waste flows are in evi-
dence, demonstrating that re-
cycling is working.
For further information about
New Jersey's program, con-
tact Aletha Spang, at (609)
292-033 lor write to

Aletha Spang, Administrator
Office of Recycling
New Jersey Department of
  Environmental Protection
401 East State Street (CN 414)
Trenton, NJ 08625

                                                                                         Aletha Spang advises state
                                                                                         recycling program
                                                                                         managers: "Changing the
                                                                                         behavior of citizens to
                                                                                         comply with recycling laws
                                                                                         is not an impossible task.
                                                                                         The majority of citizens are
                                                                                         willing to comply as long as
                                                                                         they know how the program
                                                                                         works and realize the
                                                                                         importance of participation."

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                                                                                                                  23
Oregon

Type of Program
State Overview
Background
Law requiring recycling oppor-
tunities, public education, and
promotion.
Oregon's three million people
live in small cities and towns
and one major city, Portland.
The state is divided into 38
wastesheds. Located in the Pa-
cific Northwest, Oregon has a
strong timber industry which
supports the production of pa-
per and other wood products.

Boasting the first bottle recy-
cling law in the nation, Oregon
has been in the forefront of en-
vironmental consciousness. Its
citizenry encourages and re-
sponds well to environmental
conservation and protection.
Oregonians generally'recycle
about 90 percent of their beer
and soft drink containers and
almost 70 percent of their
newspapers.
In 1983, the Recycling Oppor-
tunity Act was passed. It was
designed to make participation
in recycling easy and to re-
claim recyclable items where
they are generated: in homes,
businesses, and industries.
The recycling law added to an
already well-developed recy-
cling system. This system was
comprised of recycling brokers
and markets, nonprofit groups,
recycling depots, independent
collectors, stores collecting
beverage containers, and some
curbside collection programs
with recycling services.

The law, implemented in 1986,
requires not that everyone re-
cycle, but that everyone have
an opportunity to recycle. This
means
• A recycling depot at every
  landfill and transfer station.
• Monthly curbside collection
  of source-separated mate-
  rials in cities of more than
  4,000 population and within
  a Metropolitan Service Dis-
  trict.
• A public education and pro-
  motion program to encour-
  age recycling.
In addition, the law sets priori-
ties for waste management.
The highest priority is to re-
duce wastes; then to reuse, re-
cycle, and recover energy;
and, as a last resort, to landfill.
Recyclable material is defined
as "any material or group of
materials which can be col-
lected and sold for recycling at
a net cost equal to or less than
the cost of collection and dis-
posal of the same materials."
This definition allows for mar-
ket fluctuations, recognizes
new markets, and acknowl-
edges regional differences in
access to markets. There are
69 Oregon cities for which
curbside service is required
under the law.
 Oregonians recycle 90
  percent of their beer
     and soft  drink
   containers and 70
     percent of their
      newspapers.

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Program Description
                                                                                                                    24
Curbside service is provided in
67 cities by garbage haulers.
To encourage participation,
public education and promo-
tion programs are in effect.
They range from ad campaigns
to volunteer-produced pam-
phlets delivered door-to-door
by Cub Scouts. In addition to
curbside service in larger cit-
ies, drop-off depots operate at
almost every public disposal
site in the state.

Local governments, recyclers,
haulers, and landfill operators
have been working together.
They report to the state on
their communities' implemen-
tation programs. The state
then must decide if the pro-
grams are adequate.

In addition, many smaller cit-
ies of under 4,000 people have
chosen, in conjunction with
haulers, to provide for collec-
tions of recyclables. No com-
munity has established manda-
tory recycling.

The state, as part of its effort
to support recycling, has pro-
vided technical assistance to
local government officials and
recyclers. For example, a ge-
neric education and promotion
program was designed for
adaptation by local groups. In-
cluded are flyers, doorhangers,
radio announcements, and
newspaper ads. A bimonthly
newsletter serves as a clearing-
house for informational and
promotional material ex-
change. Workshops have also
been held to promote the ex-
change of technical and educa-
tional tools.

Since 1982, parts of Oregon's
recycling effort have experi-
enced tremendous growth:
from 14 to 104 cities with recy-
cling collection service; from
27 to 130 recycling depots at
disposal sites; and most local
communities with educational
programs in effect. The num-
ber of recycling dealers, non-
disposal-site depots, nonprofit
group recycling drives, and
stores redeeming cans and
bottles has remained fairly
constant.
Prior to passage of the Oregon
Recycling Opportunity Act,
Oregon already had a high par-
ticipation rate. This high level
of participation was exhibited
in the existing recycling pro-
grams promoted by recycling
dealers, nonprofit organiza-
tions like Boy Scouts, recy-
cling depots, and the bottle bill
redemption centers. The new
curbside programs have in-
creased the number of new re-
cyclers, while most Oregoni-
ans continue to recycle with
their same old recycling pro-
grams. For most of the new
curbside programs, participa-
tion rates run between 10 and
20 percent for households
served by curbside pickup.

Two Portland area suburbs,
Gladstone and Oregon City,
have initiated a pickup and re-
cycling program for yard waste
as well, and the entire Portland
metropolitan area is gearing up
for a new yard debris recycling
program. Eugene has a suc-
cessful yard waste composting
facility. West Linn also runs a
yard waste processing facility
that accepts as much as 50 per-
cent of the city's yard debris.
In addition to newspapers, bot-
tles, cans, cardboard, and yard
waste, Oregon has developed
three tax credit programs to
promote recycling. The largest
credit—50 percent—is avail-
able for the purchase of equip-
ment to make recycled plastic
products. The same credit is
allowed for equipment to haul
and refine used oil. Tax credits
for the purchase of any other
equipment solely or principally
used for a recycling activity
are worth 35 percent of the
cost of the equipment. These
are deducted from Oregon
taxes over a five year period.

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                                                                                                                   25
 What Makes
 Oregon's Program
 Unique?

 Oregon's wastepaper has
 proven to be a valuable substi-
 tute for its precious lumber.
 Mill and other wood wastes,
 combined with waste paper,
 have provided raw materials
 for the state's paper industry.
 The state's steel mills buy
 scrap metal, and the products
 of these mills are shipped
 throughout the West and to
 other countries. There are am-
 ple markets for glass and alu-
 minum, and bottles are sold
 and reused as well. In addition,
 many of Oregon's communi-
 ties have easy access to local
 and export markets. While
 Oregon has the built-in advan-
 tage of good markets, the state
 has made sure that it supplies a
 steady stream of recovered
 materials to maintain these
 markets.

 Whether Oregonians recycle
 through their old systems or
 take advantage of the law's
new recycling opportunities,
they do recycle!
 Obstacles Overcome      Program Contact
 Oregon's recycling efforts
 have successfully jumped
 many hurdles. There are still
 obstacles to overcome, how-
 ever. There is a lack of equip-
 ment specifically designed for
 recycling. And many local
 haulers have to modify equip-
 ment to fit small operations.
 Oregon is also limited by the
 poor market for plastics.

 Furthermore, since the trash
 haulers are also the recyclers,
 a potential conflict of interest
 may exist. Recycling equip-
 ment requires sometimes ma-
jor capital expenditures by re-
 cyclers. These will need to be
 repaid through revenues. If a
 hauler discourages recycling,
 he could add to the volume of
garbage he hauls, increasing
 his garbage hauling revenue. In
other words, he might earn
more by hauling larger vol-
umes headed for disposal than
from recycling.
For further information about
Oregon's program, contact
Peter Spendelow at (503)
229-5253 or write to

Peter H. Spendelow
Hazardous and Solid Waste
  Division
Department of Environmental
  Quality
811 S.W. Sixth Avenue
Portland, OR 97204
TRASH MENAGERIE
                                   Paper Tiger     HootOa
                                              Cardvark
                             Glasshopper



                                      Cangaroo
                                                                                         Peter Spendelow, an
                                                                                         Oregon recycling specialist,
                                                                                         suggests: "State
                                                                                         governments need to lead
                                                                                         the way for a strong public
                                                                                         education program, but
                                                                                         local communities need to
                                                                                         devote considerable
                                                                                         resources to this effort,
                                                                                         too!"

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                                                                                                            26
Queen Village  Neighborhood,  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania

Type of Program          Community Overview     Background               Program Description
Urban neighborhood "block
corner pickup" program.
Queen Village is a central Phil-
adelphia neighborhood of over
7,000 people living in a quarter
of a square mile area. The
Queen Village Neighborhood
Association organized the vol-
untary effort to serve this ur-
ban community's dense popu-
lation.
                                 L COWBPitXWHANMOO*!
                             The Queen Villise Experience In
                             Surtins in Urbin Recycling Program
                               n4 Mr CM OM Air CMMir
                               M hMn rt IKVtElM )•
                               MT33.1HL
 The neighborhood uses
 the proceeds for block
  improvement projects.
Queen Village residents began
to recycle in 1985 by starting a
drop-off center. But the drop-
off center was not convenient
and did not work.

Still convinced of the merits of
recycling, the neighborhood
considered other options. The
neighborhood group ruled out
curbside pickup because of the
expense. The "block corner
pickup" was then initiated as a
compromise between the effi-
ciency of drop-off center col-
lections and the convenience
of curbside pickup. Picking up
at designated street corners in
this Philadelphia neighborhood
also meant short traveling dis-
tances for trucks and reduced
time spent by pickup crews.
Between 9 and 10 a.m. on two
Saturdays a month, neighbors
take their newspapers, glass,
and aluminum cans to their
designated street corners. A
city truck picks up the mate-
rials.

The truck, a driver, and two
additional crew collect from 25
street corners in less than three
hours. Because of the brief
amount of time the trash sits
on the corner, there are no
complaints from neighbors and
no opportunities for vandals.
In addition to pickup time, it
takes about two hours to re-
port to the route, travel to the
repository or buyer, unload,
and report back to the base.

The Queen Village program
serves about 1,200 households
on 46 blocks. Blocks are re-
cruited into the program only if
there is a block coordinator to
hand out reminder leaflets and
encourage participation. Once
the householders get used to
block corner pickup, reminders
are tapered off.

All local organization and pub-
licity is handled by volunteers
on the Queen Village recycling
committee. The neighborhood,
which sells the recyclables,
uses the proceeds for block im-
provement projects.

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                                                                                                                     27
 What Makes Queen
 Village's Program
 Unique?

 The block corner pickup pro-
 gram is unique in itself. To
 spread the idea to other com-
 munities, Queen Village's Re-
 cycling Committee chairman,
 Robert W. Pierson, Jr., pre-
 pared a handbook on how to
 start an urban recycling pro-
 gram. The handbook is entitled
 The Block Comer Pickup
 Handbook: The Queen Village
 Experience in Starting an Ur-
 ban Recycling Program.

 The handbook presents eight
 steps in developing a block
 corner pickup program:
 • Form a recycling committee.
 • Find a buyer.
 • Find a truck to service the
  pickup route.
 • Create awareness about the
  solid waste crisis and the
  benefits of recycling.
 • Find block coordinators for
  block corner pickup.
 • Set the program start-up
  date.
• Publicize the block corner
  pickup program.
• Begin block corner pickup.
The Queen Village program
has been very successful. In
fact, it has recently been com-
pared with a curbside collec-
tion program in another Phila-
delphia neighborhood. The
study concluded that Queen
Village collected nearly twice
the recyclables from each
household served and is nearly
four times more efficient in its
use of collection crews and
trucks than curbside collec-
tion.
                               Obstacles Overcome
Queen Village takes stock of
its program from time to time
and deems it a success, not
only because of the compari-
sons above, but because of its
growing participation. The
neighbors are even considering
an expanded program, weigh-
ing a number of possibilities
such as
• Expanding pickup to include
  other materials.
• Recovering the bottles
  thrown away by restaurants
  and bars.
• Collecting high-grade office
  paper.
• Increasing the frequency of
  collection.
• Involving local schools in
  solid waste management
  projects.
                                           FOR KIDS OWI'MUNDER
                                           WIN PRIZES FOR COLLECIK
                                           THE MOST ALUMINUM CAN
                                             AND GLASS BOTTLES
                                             •""-
The Queen Village block cor-
ner pickup concept does have
some limitations.
• It is difficult to organize
  block corner pickup pro-
  grams. They require good
  local organization and infor-
  mation networks.
• The best day for community
  participation is Saturday,
  even though it is harder to
  find a hauler on Saturday.
• Cooperative neighbors' cor-
  ner sidewalks are available
  for a very limited time only.

Queen Village has been suc-
cessful even with these limita-
tions.

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                                                                                                           28
Program Contact
For further information about
Queen Village's program, con-
tact Robert Kerson at (215)
563-4220 or write to

Robert W. Pfcrson, Jr.
Rogers, Golden & Halpcrn
1216 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
                                                                                    Bob Pierson, volunteer
                                                                                    spokesman for the Queen
                                                                                    Village Recycling
                                                                                    Committee, thinks that the
                                                                                    block corner program can
                                                                                    work in other urban
                                                                                    neighborhoods: "Other
                                                                                    communities, not able to
                                                                                    arrange Saturday pickup,
                                                                                    for example, may need to
                                                                                    make special arrangements
                                                                                    such as placing special
                                                                                    recycling bins at block
                                                                                    corners or exchanging the
                                                                                    value of the recyclables for
                                                                                    free pickup by a private
                                                                                    hauler."

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                                                                                                                  29
San Jose, California
Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
                              Program Description
Comprehensive waste reduc-
tion program includes volun-
tary curbside collection, spe-
cial agreements with landfill
operators, and a recycling zon-
ing ordinance.
San Jose is a large metropoli-
tan area of more than 730,000
people, generating about
635,000 tons of trash annually.
Although the three landfills
serving the area are currently
handling those wastes, the
commitment to recycling was
born out of a strong environ-
mental commitment by the
City Council and the public.
Commitment also grew in re-
sponse to a disposal crisis in
1982, which underscored the
need to diversify the city's dis-
posal strategy beyond complete
reliance on landfills.
 In 1983, San Jose adopted a
 comprehensive set of goals and
 principles for solid waste man-
 agement, including reducing its
 waste stream by 25 percent by
 1990. Recycling and waste re-
 duction initiatives have been
 aggressively pursued to meet
 this goal. A curbside recycling
 program was the first major
 step of this effort. In 1985, the
 city's first waste reduction
 strategy to attain the 25 per-
 cent goal was adopted. The
 strategy focused on a $19 mil-
 lion, six-year waste reduction
 plan. Since then, a revised
 1987 strategy calls for a $25
 million effort and a 36 percent
reduction in waste by 1992.
San Jose has acted on evi-
dence that recycling is and will
continue to be less costly than
collecting, hauling, and dispos-
ing of wastes in increasingly
expensive landfills.
 San Jose's recycling program
 consists of its waste reduction
 strategy, the largest weekly
 curbside recycling program in
 the nation, and support for re-
 cycling in contracts, permits,
 and ordinances.

 The curbside program, averag-
 ing 57 percent participation,
 was expanded to include
 175,000 single-family house-
 holds. Because it was demon-
 strated in the pilot study that
 more households participated
 when three special stacking
 containers were provided, the
 expanded program's resi-
 dences all received containers.
 San Jose's expanded citywide
 effort now is recovering about
 22,000 tons each year. To pro-
 vide this service, the city has
 contracted with a waste com-
 pany to provide the service for
 $1.9 million annually. .

 During the last fiscal year, the
 waste collection company re-
 ceived about one-third of its
 revenues from the sale of re-
covered material. The rest
came from the city. Also, to
bolster participation, the city
has a major ongoing promo-
tional program, with a budget
The curbside program
   was expanded to
include 175,000 single-
  family households.

-------
                                                                                                                     30
of $200,000 a year used for
doorhangers, school outreach,
minority outreach, and media
programs. San Jose has saved
over $190,000 in avoided land-
fill tipping fees since the start
of this pilot program.

New initiatives underway in
San Jose include developing a
program to collect yard wastes
at curbside for producing high
quality compost, working to
develop new markets for re-
cyclables, designing a house-
hold hazardous waste pro-
gram, and developing a pilot
program for apartment house
recycling. Another new initia-
tive assists businesses in re-
ducing their wastes and in-
creasing the amount they
recycle. And to discourage
businesses from landfilling, a
business tax of $2 per cubic
yard is levied on all landfill dis-
posal. One landfill operator is
already diverting as much as 25
percent from its waste stream.
Another landfill is developing  a
major "Recyclery" to recycle
up to 40 percent of its incoming
commercial waste stream.
What Makes San
Jose's Program
Unique?           ,

In addition to recycling initia-
tives, San Jose has included a
variety of requirements in col-
lection and disposal contracts
and landfill permits to help
meet recycling goals. Disposal
and permit agreements address
• Providing for composting.
• Using compost as landfill
   cover.
• Salvaging white goods and
   bulky wastes.
• Providing recycling informa-
   tion and economic incen-
   tives to encourage participa-
   tion.
• Evaluating the potential of
   waste-to-energy on the site.
• Developing methane recov-
   ery.
• Maintaining scales and col-
   lecting data for use in future
   planning.

 The State of California has
 passed an innovative beverage
 container recycling law which
 requires new recycling facili-
 ties to be established within
 one-half mile of every major
 supermarket in the state. To
 encourage the acceptance of
 these new recycling facilities, a
zoning ordinance was enacted
to permit mobile, movable,
and stationary recycling collec-
tion operations in most zoning
districts of the city. These are
subject to appropriate regula-
tions and assume compatibility
with surrounding land uses.
Similar efforts were made to
permit recycling processing
operations in most commercial
and industrial zoning districts,
subject to appropriate regula-
tory control. Furthermore, the
zoning code ensures that recy-
cling containers are built to
prevent litter, to minimize
noise and other nuisances, and
to be attractive and blend in
with their surroundings.
                                                                                           Obstacles Overcome
Through a carefully con-
structed strategy implemented
over several years, San Jose
was able to change its entire
waste system from one that re-
lied solely on landfilling to one
that emphasizes recycling and
waste reduction as primary
goals.

But there are still hurdles to
jump. One may be the prover-
bial price of success. The na-
tional prominence of San
Jose's program has resulted in
an overwhelming  demand for
tours, informational materials,
and technical information. Re-
quests come from other cities
around the world, as well as
from private industries. The
amount of staff time needed to
be responsive to these requests
is a problem for the city.

To address this problem, San
Jose is proposing that San Jose
State University be funded to
develop an information trans-
fer program that would eventu-
ally be part of a national inte-
grated waste management
information network. The city
is looking for $100,000 to fund
this university-based system.
 A second phase of such a pro-
gram would include curriculum
 development and training for
 recycling professionals.

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                                                                                                                      31
                                                             Program Contact
 Another significant hurdle al-
 ready cleared has been the
 funding of its expanded pro-
 gram. A 1985 city windfall
 went to support the expanded
 recycling effort. This money
 resulted from savings realized
 through the competition for
 garbage business. A revised
 business tax of $2 a cubic yard
 on trash, adopted in 1987, also
 supported program expansion.
 With other cities now able to
 use San Jose's facilities, addi-
 tional revenues from business
 taxes will support a further ex-
 pansion of recycling services.

 The remaining hurdle involves
 how to accrue to recycling the
 avoided costs of collection and
 disposal. Currently, the city
 benefits from avoided disposal
 costs. The garbage collector
 pays the city a recycling rebate
 for every ton of waste recycled
 as an avoided disposal cost.
 The garbage collector, as a re-
 sult of recycling, benefits addi-
 tionally from needing fewer
trucks on the road. The collec-
tion company does not cur-
rently share this benefit with
the city. San Jose is negotiat-
ing with the garbage company
to share those savings as part
of the development of its yard
waste composting effort.
When the city solicits bids in
1990, garbage companies will
need to reflect avoided collec-
tion costs in order to be com-
petitive. Nevertheless, most
San Jose residents already
benefit from the city's recy-
cling program and its inte-
grated waste management
system.
For further information about
San Jose's program, contact
Gary Liss at (408) 277-4509 or
write to

Gary Brian Liss
Solid Waste Program Manager
Office of Environmental
  Management
801 N. First Street, Room 460
San Jose, CA 95110
                                                                                           Gary Liss believes: 'The
                                                                                           real key to accomplishing
                                                                                           integrated waste
                                                                                           management is for
                                                                                           institutions—including
                                                                                           contracts, permits, and rate
                                                                                           structures—to be changed
                                                                                           to foster waste reduction
                                                                                           and recycling."

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                                                                                                              32
Santa Monica,  California
Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
                             Program Description
Multi-faceted voluntary pro-
gram, includes "recycling
zones" for multi-family
dwellings.
Santa Monica is a city of
96,000 people, 83 percent of
whom live in multi-family
housing. The city encompasses
an area of about eight and a
half square miles along Califor-
nia's coastline.
  SANTA MONICA
  RECYCLE
The Santa Monica recycling ef-
fort was initiated under a 1981-
1982 recycling grants program
sponsored by the California
Waste Management Board. An
initial grant for $30,000 funded
a feasibility study and prelimi-
nary design for the recycling
program. A second grant for
$260,000 was used to purchase
equipment, improve existing
recycling sites, and start a pub-
lic relations campaign.

Santa Monica currently uses a
privately owned landfill lo-
cated 31 miles from the city.
However, this landfill is ex-
pected to close by 1991 if it is
not expanded. An alternative
landfill is further away by 15
miles, but using it would re-
quire increased transportation
costs and possibly increased
tipping fees. In addition to the
shortage and expense of land-
fills, Santa Monica is faced
with another problem shared
by many urbanized areas—the
overwhelming percentage of
people living in apartment
complexes. To combat this po-
tential obstacle, the city re-
 sponded with the creation of a
 "recycling zone" program.
Challenged by the number of
citizens living in multi-family
dwellings and the need to recy-
cle their wastes, Santa Monica.
developed its "recycling
zone" initiative. As a result,
alleyways behind apartment
houses are dotted with three
specially designed, two-cubic-
yard bins for mixed glass,
mixed cans, and newspapers.
Currently, no resident needs to
travel farther than one-third of
a mile to recycle. There are 61
drop-off zones serving 35,000
multi-family units. In 1988 and
1989, the program will be add-
ing 30 new zones.

The recycling zone concept
has also been expanded to
nearly 25 bars and restaurants.
Recycling bins  received about
three tons of material a month
from bars and restaurants at
the start of the  program. Eight
to ten tons a month are now
collected in these bins.

In single-family residential
areas, residents receive two
five-gallon storing buckets for
mixed glass and mixed metal.
     Overall recycling
   participation in Santa
      Monica is at 27
          percent.

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                                                                                                                        33
 A recycling crew picks these
 up biweekly, along with news-
 paper in bundles and used mo-
 tor oil in sealed, non-breakable
 containers.

 The recycling program has a
 contract to sell all collected
 materials to a private recycler,
 who leases property from the
 city. The private recycler also
 has a buy-back and drop-off
 center at this site, where glass,
 metal, and newspaper are pur-
 chased. In addition, the center
 buys scrap metals, various
 grades of paper, plastic bever-
 age bottles, magazines, and
 phone books. Used motor oil
 and cardboard are accepted,
 but customers are not paid for
 these materials.

 To encourage the proper dis-
 posal of used motor oil, a net-
 work of eight automotive serv-
 ice businesses was created to
 accept used oil from residents.
 By agreeing to participate, the
 businesses get their oil picked
 up free of charge by a private
 hauler.

Other recycling services of-
fered to residents include a
paint exchange and a house-
hold hazardous waste collec-
tion center. Santa Monica resi-
dents may bring their unused
 household paints to a special
 center at the recycling office.
 Residents may also pick up
 this donated paint, free of
 charge. Paint not taken by resi-
 dents is recycled and used by
 the city for graffiti removal.

 A household hazardous waste
 collection center is now open
 for Santa Monica residents
 only. Materials collected in-
 clude solvents, paint thinners,
 pesticides, batteries, pool
 acids, household cleaners and
 other similar types of waste.
 The center expects to collect
 30,000 pounds of household
 hazardous wastes annually.

 In addition to these services,
 the city is also involved in col-
 lecting and recycling non-resi-
 dential waste. A private com-
 pany leases city-owned land
 and operates a "debris yard"
 where concrete, asphalt, and
 other demolition rubble are re-
 cycled into aggregate for con-
 struction uses. Scrap metal
generated at city yards is col-
lected and sold for recycling,
and office paper generated at
most city facilities is also col-
lected for recycling.
What have all these efforts
yielded? Total tonnage recy-
cled includes the following:
                  TONS IN

     ITEM      1986   1987-88

Newspapers... 1,312    1,210
Glass	  569     565
Aluminum cans     3.25     4.01
Steel cans ....   64      42
High-grade
  paper	   11      n
  (from city
   offices only)
Scrap
  metals	  161     154
  (generated at
   city yards)
Used motor
  oil	    4.44     5.16
                (1,269    (1,474
               gallons)  gallons)
 What Makes Santa
 Monica's Program
 Unique?

 The city has a very successful
 participation rate of 22 percent
 for apartment dwellers. In fact,
 Santa Monica's recycling pro-
 gram was recognized in 1983
 by the National Recycling Co-
 alition as the "Best Multi-
 Family Program." The success
 of this program is attributed
 primarily to the convenient
 placement of recycling con-
 tainers near apartment build-
 ings. Overall recycling partici-
 pation in Santa Monica is at 27
 percent, with some single-fam-
 ily residential areas as high as
 60 percent.

 Santa Monica's special wastes
 collection is also unique. A
 new household hazardous col-
 lection center receives small
 quantities of hazardous chemi-
 cal products as a free service
 to residents. These leftover
 products include corrosives
 like drain and oven cleaners
 and pool acids; solvents such
 as polishes, spot removers,
 and mothballs; paint products;
 aerosol sprays; pesticides; and
 automotive fluids. Further-
 more, a guide to safe substi-
tutes and alternatives to using
hazardous substances has been
prepared and distributed to
households.

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                                                                                                                 34
Obstacles Overcome      Program Contact
Santa Monica's recycling pro-
gram has overcome a few ob-
stacles. One obstacle, scav-
enging, has hampered the
program since it reduces the
amount of material collected.
An insufficient market for
products using recycled yard
wastes led to the demise of the
yard waste collection pro-
gram—another minor setback.

The city is also facing the chal-
lenge of recycling plastic con-
tainers. The original program
was not designed to include
plastics collection and recy-
cling. Therefore, the current
system would require modifi-
cation and increased opera-
tional expenses in order to ac-
commodate the additional
volumes and special needs cre-
ated by plastic bottles.

In spite of these setbacks and
challenges, Santa Monica's re-
cycling program seems to be
thriving!
For further information about
Santa Monica's program, con-
tact Deborah Baine at (213)
458-8526 or 458-8527, or
write to

Deborah Baine, Coordinator
Santa Monica Recycle
2500 Michigan Avenue
Santa Monica, CA 90404
                                                                                         Deborah Baine, Coordinator
                                                                                         of Santa Monica's recycling
                                                                                         program, suggests, 'To
                                                                                         reduce scavenging, avoid
                                                                                         placing bins under building
                                                                                         balconies, near gas or
                                                                                         water meters, or across
                                                                                         from carports or garage
                                                                                         entrances with turnaround
                                                                                         areas."

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                                                                                                              35
Sauk County, Wisconsin
Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
                             Program Description
Private, nonprofit, regional re-
cycling enterprise.
Located in rural Wisconsin,
Sauk County is the site of the
Wisconsin Intercounty Non-
profit Recycling Company
(WINR). The 43,000 residents
of Sauk County and two
towns in Dane County are
served by WINR.
Rural communities are
 jointly served by this
   regional, nonprofit
       enterprise.
In 1978, Mildred Zantow spent
six weeks in Japan. There she
saw that garbage is separated
and that different items are col-
lected each day. She returned
to Baraboo, Sauk County, a
firm advocate for recycling.

Ms. Zantow observed the large
amount of plastics at the
county landfill, mostly because
there are many plastic manu-
facturers located in the area.
One of those plastic companies
agreed to purchase her recy-
cled plastic if she bought a
grinder at her own expense.
Determined to make recycled
plastic a reality, she cashed in
her life insurance policy and
bought a grinder. With a part-
ner, she then established E-Z
Recycling. The partners soon
expanded the business, taking
in aluminum, glass, newsprint,
cardboard, grease, and oil. As-
sisted by two helpers, they col-
lected the materials, baled
cardboard, and cleaned plastic
milk jugs. They made the proj-
ect work!

In 1982, E-Z was sold to
WINR, where Ms. Zantow
now serves as volunteer man-
ager. Baraboo, Sauk City,
Prairie du Sac, and other com-
munities are served by this re-
gional endeavor.
Today, the nonprofit company
receives recyclable materials
from
• Two mandatory, curbside,
  source-separation programs,
  in which there is 95 percent
  participation.
• Two towns with voluntary,
  curbside pickup. Recycled
  materials from the towns are
  delivered to WINR.
• Five drop-off satellite cen-
  ters, which are staffed twice
  a week. The recyclables are
  sorted and put into trailers.
  Then the trailers are hauled
  to. WINR to be processed
  and marketed.
• Two Dane County town gar-
  bage haulers, who bring re-
  covered materials to WINR.

Each participating town is rep-
resented on a governing Board
of Directors that oversees the
operation. Six people are on
the payroll; 35 people are vol-
unteers, working six at a time.
The Wisconsin Department of
Natural Resources helps the
program by developing educa-
tional materials. And in 1985,
Sauk County gave a grant to
the nonprofit, independent
company.

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                                                                                                                  36
WINR recycled over 12,000
tons of material in 1988. This is
more than 200 tons above the
recycling figures for 1987. In
the mandatory collection pro-
grams, over 30 percent of all
household, commercial, and
industrial recyclable materials
are being recycled.
What Makes Sauk
County's Program
Unique?

This privately operated, non-
profit enterprise is recycling a
lot of material. And the pro-
gram relies mostly on volun-
teers—primarily retired friends
in the community.

The company does not pay for
any recovered materials. The
citizens of Sauk County do not
expect to be paid. Further-
more, there is no charge for
leaving recyclables. In the fu-
ture, however, a small tipping
fee may be established.

WINR is about to embark on a
unique, new project to help lo-
cal drought-stricken farmers.
Working closely with the Uni-
versity of Wisconsin and the
Extension Service, the com-
pany will shred newsprint for
use as animal bedding in barns.
The university is designing a
shredder/baler unit for this pur-
pose. Shredded and baled
newspaper will be picked up
by farmers, free of charge. To
enhance this and its other
operations, the recycling
enterprise is moving to larger
quarters.
                                                           Obstacles Overcome       Program Contact
Two of the company's most
serious obstacles have been
public apathy and low market
prices. To overcome apathy,
educational programs are pre-
sented to schools and civic
groups. This seems to work
well in Wisconsin small towns
and rural areas, where people
are easily informed about the
problems caused by excessive
waste and want to be good
neighbors. Finding new mar-
kets, on the other hand, takes a
lot of hard work!
For further information about
Sauk County's program, con-
tact Mildred Zantow at
(608) 643-2274 or write to

Mildred Zantow
Wisconsin Intercounty Nonprofit
  Recycling Company, Inc.
S7691 U.S. Highway 12
North Freedom, WI53591
                                                                                          Milly Zantow confidently
                                                                                          states, "Recycling is the
                                                                                          only way to go in the future.
                                                                                          There's just no alternative."

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                                                                                                                 37
Seattle,  Washington
Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
Curbside collection and drop-
off centers.
A city surrounded by the Cas-
cade and Olympic mountain
ranges and Puget Sound,
Seattle is blessed with a myr-
iad of recreational opportuni-
ties. Its port is also central to a
large international shipping in-
dustry. Seattle is home to
about 470,000 people.
    The City Council
 established a goal of
recycling 40 percent of
  all commercial and
 residential waste by
          1991.
Seattle's citizens support
many private recycling enter-
prises. About 25 percent of the
city's waste stream has been
diverted from landfills by these
operations, a combination of
volunteer group recycling
drives and drop-off and buy-
back centers.
                                                           Still, in 1988, the City Council
                                                           established a goal of recycling
                                                           40 percent of all commercial
                                                           and residential waste gener-
                                                           ated within the city by 1991.
                                                           This goal will increase to 50
                                                           percent by 1993 and 60 percent
                                                           by 1998. Seattle's residential
                                                           solid waste is managed by a
                                                           city utility and financed
                                                           through an enterprise fund.
                                                           Rates are the source of reve-
                                                           nue. For years, Seattle man-
                                                           aged all parts of the garbage
                                                           system, from collection con-
                                                           tracts to transfer stations to
                                                           long-haul transfer to city
                                                           owned and operated landfills.
                                                           But by 1986, both of the city's
                                                           landfills had to be closed be-
                                                           cause of explosive levels of
                                                           methane gas migrating off site
                                                           and their subsequent listing as
                                                           Superfund sites. So the city
had no choice but to contract
with surrounding King County
for landfill disposal. Disposal
rates rose from $ 11 a ton to
$31.50 a ton. In addition, clo-
sure of two old landfills would
cost $76 million. These sky-
rocketing costs were the bane
of the old-style solid waste
management system, but a
boon to a system which incor-
porates waste reduction, recy-
cling, and composting. Thus,
the ground was laid for Seattle
to begin its plan for recycling.
In addition, the city recently
completed a comprehensive
planning initiative which in-
cluded a ten-volume environ-
mental impact statement on
waste reduction, recycling,
and disposal alternatives.

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                                                                                                                     38
Program Description
                              What Makes Seattle's
                              Program Unique?
Early in 1988, Seattle began
residential curbside collection,
servicing 147,000 house-
holds—all single-unit through
four-unit residences in the city.
Two different collection strate-
gies are being tested. North of
the ship canal, residents re-
ceive three stackable house-
hold containers for newspaper,
mixed bottles and cans, and
other mixed paper. The con-
tainers are picked up weekly.
In the southern half of the city,
residents mix all their recycla-
bles in a 60- or 90-gallon con-
tainer for monthly pickup.

Seattle has an active house-
hold hazardous waste collec-
tion program. There is a per-
manently staffed drop-site
open 35 hours a week at one of
its transfer stations. Drop-off is
$4 for unlimited quantities.
Also, the utility is sponsoring
research into paint recycling.

The city now requires manda-
tory yard waste separation
from household trash. Yard
wastes represent 30 percent of
the residential waste stream.
The city wiU pick it up at the
curb or alley for $2 a month
and take it to a composting fa-
cility. Grass clippings, leaves,
branches, brush, and sod are
accepted. At transfer stations,
the utility accepts clean yard
waste in a program called
Clean Green. The brush, grass,
and leaves are transferred to a
private composting facility for
processing. The utility also
funds a backyard composting
education program run by
Seattle Tilth, a local nonprofit
organization of urban garden-
ers. In 1989 the program will
be expanded to include "yard
waste auditors," who will
make house calls and distrib-
ute free composting bins.

The utility also provides recy-
cling drop boxes at its two
transfer stations, receiving all
the traditional materials: from
aluminum cans to cardboard to
used motor oil to white goods
to some not-so-traditional ma-
terials, such as mattresses.
Seattle's experiment with two
different collection systems for
recyclables should provide
some interesting information
and lessons for other cities.
Both programs are voluntary.
Citizens are asked to recycle
through church and school
drives, at drop-off sites, or
buy-back centers—whatever
works best for them. Or they
can participate in the city recy-
cling program.

In the south, they can recycle
mixed paper, tin and aluminum
cans, glass jars and bottles,
cardboard, and aluminum foil
with the curbside and alley
program just by signing up.
Participating households re-
ceive a sturdy plastic container
on wheels that has a lid and is
suitable for outdoor storage. A
free calendar tells them which
day to wheel their carts to the
curb or alley for emptying.

The program, serving 82,000
households, is run by Recycle
Seattle, a subsidiary of Ra-
banco, Inc., a large, locally
owned waste management
company. Recyclables are col-
lected in old rear-loading
trucks, then processed in a
new recycling facility. This
80,000 square foot facility
processes both commercial
waste with a high percentage
of recyclables and the commin-
gled material collected from
curbside. The city pays Recy-
cle Seattle $47.75 a ton. Their
contract does not require a
minimum payment, but does
have an agreement that the city
and the company share risks of
changes in the recycled mate-
rials market.

North of the ship canal, Recy-
cle America, a subsidiary of
Waste Management, Inc.,
serves 65,000 households.
Three stacking containers are
provided: one for glass con-
tainers and aluminum and tin
cans; a second for mixed scrap
paper; and a third for newspa-
per. Cardboard is set out next
to the containers. A compart-
mentalized recycling truck col-
lects the material. Recycle
America separates the glass,
aluminum, and tin with a com-
bination of hand and mechani-
cal sorting. Seattle pays the
company $48.15 a ton, with a
minimum payment of $2.8 mil-
lion over the five-year con-
tract. Recycle America ab-
sorbs total market risk.

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                                                                                                                       39
                                                                                             Obstacles Overcome
 Successful implementation of
 such a large program in such a
 short time has required both
 extensive promotion and re-
 sponsive customer service rep-
 resentatives in the city's solid
 waste utility. The utility man-
 ages all promotional efforts,
 but carries them out in con-
junction with the two contrac-
 tors and a consultant.

 Two all-city mailings kicked
 off the program. Customers
 were asked to sign up to re-
 ceive a recycling container.
 Public service announcements
 were also ran on television.
 Once the initial rush of sign-
 ups was over, there was a con-
 tinuing effort to advertise and
 promote the program to en-
 courage more participation.
The utility staffs booths at
 street fairs, works crowds at
festivals, and will soon have
bus placards around the city.
The utility regularly creates
media events to get coverage,
and Recycle America has de-
veloped a newsletter for the
north end of the city. A Cash
for Trash program, complete
with its own costumed recy-
cling superheroine called
Major Recycler, has been
started by the solid waste util-
 ity. Next year, it plans to begin
 neighborhood blitzes and a
 block leader program.

 The two-zone program began
 in February 1988. By August,
 2,600 tons of material were
 being collected each month, a
 significant amount of material
 for such a new program. By
 the end of October, 72.1 per-
 cent of the eligible households
 had signed up in the north end;
 48.7 percent had signed up in
 the south end. The city-wide
 signup rate is 59 percent. Re-
 cycle Seattle in October aver-
 aged 29.2 pounds per eligible
 household. Recycle America
 averaged 45.8 pounds per eligi-
 ble household. The city-wide
 average was 36.6 pounds per
 eligible household.

 In addition to the two-zone re-
 cycling program, the city funds
 research and development  of
 waste reduction and recycling
 techniques through a unique
 program called the Environ-
 mental Allowance Program.
 This allows both nonprofit or-
 ganizations and for-profit firms
 to propose to the utility their
 best ideas. Projects currently
 in progress under the Environ-
mental Allowance Program in-
clude these:
 • Paper Fibres, Inc., collects
   mixed wastepaper from
   small businesses and apart-
   ment buildings.
 • Washington Energy Exten-
   sion Service has developed
   dial tapes, slide shows and
   information tapes on waste
   reduction.
 • King County Nurses Asso-
   ciation will educate the com-
   munity on the hazards and
   proper disposal of disposa-
   ble diapers.
 • R.W. Beck will do waste re-
   duction audits for fifty busi-
   nesses and educate other
   commercial generators at
   waste reduction workshops.

 A new six-month pilot plastic
 recycling program is under
 way in Seattle as well. Seven
 collection routes serving 4,500
 households participate. People
 not on these routes can take
 their rinsed and flattened plas-
 tics to one of four locations:
 two stores and two transfer
 stations.

The material will be purchased
by a Thai plastic company. It
will be shipped to Thailand
where it wiU be recycled into
new products or sold as a
raw material to other Asian
markets.
Seattle is very pleased with the
results of its program so far.
The city has had a few set-
backs, too, from which it has
learned:

• The city fire code had to be
   changed to allow plastic gar-
   bage containers.
• The number of needed recy-
   cling trucks was underesti-
   mated at nine; eighteen will
   soon be utilized.
• The processing facility was
   not yet operational at the
   time collection began. Recy-
   cle America began its proc-
   essing operation in an open
   parking lot!
• Customer service had to be
   upgraded to respond to over
   10,000 calls a month. Be-
   cause the staff wasn't avail-
   able, about half of these
   calls were lost during start-
   up operations.
• Signing up for service turned
   out to be a problem. Seattle
   might not require sign-ups if
   they had to begin again. The
   city might just supply con-
   tainers to every eligible
   household.

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Program Contact
                                                                                                               40
For further information about
Seattle's program, contact
Timothy Croll at (206)
684-7640 or write to

Timothy Croll
Program Development Director
Seattle Solid Waste Utility
710 2nd Avenue, Suite SOS
Seattle, W'A 98104
Tim Croll suggests that
recycling be viewed as a
solid waste management
tool. "Be willing to fund
recycling with the cost
savings from the refuse side
of the operation, and
structure garbage rates to
provide an incentive for
recycling."

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                                                                                                                41
 University City, Missouri
 Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
                              Program Description
 Leaf collection and compost-
 ing.
University City, outside of St.
Louis, is a middle-class com-
munity with an abundance of
leaf-bearing trees. The popula-
tion of University City is about
43,000.
For many years, University
City had been collecting leaves
raked to the gutter line by resi-
dents. In the late 1960s, when
leaf burning was banned, the
city took the leaves to a land-
fill. By 1970, a refuse transfer
station started operating, re-
ducing travel costs to the land-
fill. Soon, however, landfill
disposal costs began to rise.

The city, as part of its effort to
reduce landfill costs, began to
recycle newspaper and metals.
When it was discovered that
leaves represented over 15 per-
cent of University City's an-
nual waste stream, leaves be-
came the next target for waste
reduction.
 The University City leaf com-
 posting program began in 1983
 on less than an acre of unim-
 proved park land. Using city
 collection equipment, approxi-
 mately 20 truck and sweeper
 loads are brought in daily for
 two months in the fall.

 Now University City collects
 approximately 9,200 cubic
 yards of mulched leaves an-
 nually with the help of vacuum
 loaders and street sweepers.
 This material is turned several
 times during the winter and
 early spring, utilizing an aera-
 tor/pulverizer which further
 mulches the material. Total
 processing time is approxi-
 mately six months, after which
 the compost is reduced to 20 to
 25 percent of the volume origi-
 nally deposited. The estimated
 weight is between 1,000 and
 1,200 pounds per cubic yard.

 University City currently sells
the finished leaf compost for $4
a cubic yard, returning at least
a portion of the costs of pro-
University City collects
  approximately 9,200
cubic yards of mulched
    leaves annually.

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                                                                                                                   42
cessing and loading into the
purchaser's trucks or trailers.
Users include tree and plant
nurseries, landscaping compa-
nies, and many individuals and
companies using one or two
truckloads.

      University City Leaf
  Composting Cost Analysis

Landfill Cost
  Avoidance 	$39,250
Land Haul Cost
  Avoidance	  41,559
Revenue from
  Sale of Mulch ....   4,592
Cost of Processing
  {Estimate)....... ( 4.281)

Net Annual
  Value Gained ....$81,120
What Makes
University City's
Program Unique?

University City has turned 15
percent of its waste stream into
a useful commodity. This is
particularly unique in an area
where other community pro-
grams have fallen victim to
costs and labor needs of collec-
tion, coupled with difficulties
of handling and disposal.

Stock piles of leaf compost are
provided for the use of resi-
dents for their lawns and gar-
dens  at no cost. For commer-
cial use,  the charge of $4 per
cubic yard includes loading
trucks—a real bargain. One
landscape company worked
three or four inches of compost
into several acres in which
young trees were planted. The
company had done this several
years before and experienced
phenomenal growth. It was
also used to heal or protect the
balls on larger tree stock. An-
other landscaper added sand
 and leaf compost to her own
 lawn, where she is doing an ex-
 perimental project with a very
 deep-rooted grass that should
 be resistant to drought and
 cold. Although it had been too
 wet to plant the grass seed,  she
 was  amazed to find no washing
 of the relatively steep lawn af-
 ter heavy rains.
A new shopping center used
leaf compost in all of its out-
side planting beds, working it
into fill soil. Here wood chips
were used for top dressing. Al-
though the leaf compost could
have been used for the same
purpose, it would decompose
more rapidly than the wood
chips. The city park depart-
ment used leaf compost to im-
prove the soil in its planting
beds as well.

The city continues to promote
the value of compost to add or
replace organic matter to the
soil. Compost is useful to
• Help plants utilize available
   nutrients.
• Act as a storehouse of water,
   preventing soil erosion.
• Loosen heavy clay, allowing
   plants to breathe.
• Serve as top dressing to re-
   duce compaction, lessen
   maintenance, and insulate
   roots.
• Upgrade poor soil.

 Furthermore, leaf compost is
 cheap! University City's
 method of turning leaves in
 minimum space and marketing
 compost through local land-
 scape and nursery companies
 also adds to its uniqueness.
                                                                                          Obstacles Overcome
University City has convinced
residents and businesses to use
compost! However, the larger
market has not been fully de-
veloped. The city is working to
avoid carry-over of compost
from one year to the next. Cur-
rent inventory is about 1,300
cubic yards.

Currently, smaller quantity
customers means higher costs.
University City would wel-
come a single purchaser for
most or all of its compost.

The city also hopes to improve
a loading and delivery system
to its customers. While a large-
volume trailer would serve this
purpose, the expense cannot
be justified at this time. Uni-
versity City is experimenting
also with a chemical spray that
can reduce odors produced af-
ter compost turns anaerobic,
without harming the bacteria in
the mulch.

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 Program Contact
                                                                                                                                 43
 For further information about
 University City's program,
 contact Allan B. Dieckgraefe,
 at (314) 862-6767 ext. 260 or
 write to

 Allan B. Dieckgraefe, Director
 Department of Public Works
 6801 Delmar Boulevard
 University City, MO 63130
                              2.
                              When the 17-cubic-yard box is filled, the truck
                              disconnects from the loader and hauls the shredded
                              leaves to a processing area on unimproved park
                              land. The truck then returns to a route, where it is
                              reconnected to the original or another loader.
                                                                                          3.
                                                      An aerator/pulverizer mounted on a wheel loader
                                                       further shreds and piles leaves in the processing
                                                     area. The machine uses 3-foot-diameter paddles on
                                                                       a horizontal shaft 7'6" long.
                                       This shows a vacuum loader towed behind a truck,
                                       picking up leaves from the street gutter. The loader
                                       blows leaves through a flexible connection into a
                                       box mounted on the towing vehicle.
Allan Dieckgraefe, Director
of University City's
recycling program, believes
there's a strong need for
compost to prevent the loss
of topsoil. "In this age  of
high tech, it's comforting to
know that a low-tech
process, such as
composting, can help solve
a critical problem."
                                                                                 4.
                                                                                 Windrows are created, 8 to 10 feet high and 20 to
                                                                                 35 feet at the base. The piles are turned periodically
                                                                                 to restore oxygen for bacterial composting action.
 This shows that after approximately 6 months of
  processing there is a dark, rich, peat moss-like
material immediately below the surface ready for
       use as a soil amendment or stabilization.

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                                                                                                                44
Wellesley, Massachusetts
Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
                             Program Description
Voluntary, source-separation
drop-off recycling center.
Wellesley is a town of 27,000
people, located about 25 min-
utes from downtown Boston.
It is primarily a suburban resi-
dential community.
Wellesley's recycling program
was started in 1971 by local en-
vironmentalists and the De-
partment of Public Works
when the town's incinerator
failed to meet air emission
standards. Unlike many of the
earlier recycling centers
around the nation, Wellesley's
is still in business and is thriv-
ing. Located at the town Recy-
cling and Disposal Center, the
operation has grown from col-
lecting materials in 55-gallon
drums to using 40-cubic-yard,
open-top, transfer-haul con-
tainers, plus horizontal and pit
balers. It is now run by the
town public works department
and consists of a recycling cen-
ter, transfer station, and yard
waste composting site.

Wellesley has never had curb-
side garbage collection. Its res-
idents—at least 83 percent of
them—take their refuse to the
Recycling and Disposal Center
(RDF). The Wellesley RDF is
free only to residents. Welles-
ley hauls its refuse to a private
sanitary landfill 25 miles away,
which charges more than $25 a
ton in tipping fees.
Town residents bring both sep-
arated recyclables and regular
garbage to the town recycling
and disposal facility. There are
drop boxes there clearly
marked for glass, newspaper,
corrugated cardboard, mixed
paper, tin cans, aluminum, bat-
teries, nonferrous and ferrous
metal, used oil, plastic bottles,
yard waste, firewood, and
tires. There is also a reusable
items corner for the exchange
of books, games, toys, appli-
ances, furniture, and clothes.
In addition, there is an area for
composting leaves, grass, and
other yard wastes. The RDF is
a redemption center under the
Massachusetts Bottle Bill as
well.

About 90 percent of Wellesley
residents who use the RDF
also recycle. Newspaper,
glass, cardboard, ferrous
metal, and aluminum are the
primary materials recycled. In
addition, cardboard, metals,
glass, and returnable con-
tainers are taken from the tip-
ping floor of the transfer sta-
tion, which is used for
residential and commercial
refuse.
  Net recycling benefits
   for 1988 were about
         $188,000.

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                                                                                                                     45
 The following materials are
 collected and sorted at the
 Wellesley recycling and dis-
 posal facility:

PAPER
   Newspaper
   Cardboard and corrugated
   Brown paper bags
   Mixed paper—magazines, junk
   mail, etc.
GLASS

   Clear
Green  • Brown
CANS
   Aluminum
   Steel, bimetal

PLASTIC

   High density polyethylene con-
   tainers

OIL

   Engine

TIRES
BATTERIES
 • Automotive

METALS
 • Iron
 • Steel
 • Aluminum
        Wet cells
        Brass
        Copper
WOOD

 « Logs provided free for firewood
 • Kindling free to townspeople
 • Wood chips—for mulch or com-
   post


LEAVES, GRASS & YARD
WASTES

 • Composted—available free to
   town residents; excess sold or
   donated

RETURNABLE BOTTLES &
CANS

 • All types—five-cent refund and
   two-cent handling fees go to the
   town

BOOKS

 • People can take and leave
   books free at the "Book Ex-
   change"

CLOTHING,  SMALL
EQUIPMENT, ETC.

 • Donated to Salvation Army or
   Goodwill Industries (an at-
   tended trailer at recycling
   center)

MISCELLANEOUS REUSABLE
ITEMS—"TAKE IT OR LEAVE
IT" AREA

 a Usable furniture, equipment,
   and miscellaneous articles are
   left by residents and taken free
   by other residents
In 1987, more than 16 percent
of the 17,677 tons of waste
processed at the RDF was re-
cycled. Figures for 1988 show
that 3,047 tons, or 19 percent,
of the total residential, com-
mercial, and municipal solid
wastes are recycled. This is 24
percent of residential trash.
Recycling net benefits were
about $186,000 for 1988. This
includes sales of recyclables,
avoided hauling and landfill
costs, and recycling expenses.
What Makes
Wellesley's Program
Unique?

 The Wellesley drop-off center
 evolved from a town incinera-
 tor site to a multi-purpose re-
 cycling center. The center is
 proud of its park and social-
 gathering setting. Picnic tables,
 well-maintained lawns, trees,
 flowers, and a circular drive
 contribute to the site's popu-
 larity for Girl Scout cookie
 sales as well as political glad-
 handing.

 The center is also unique in its
 wide acceptance by townspeo-
 ple and its dedicated staff. Fur-
 ther, the Wellesley recycling
 center sponsors a recycling ed-
 ucation program aimed at all
 Wellesley residents, including
 a curriculum for third graders
 in Wellesley public and private
 schools. "Recycle. Join the
 Team"  is its theme. The center
 also actively promotes other
 recycling in the community.
 For instance, it helps spread
 the word about community-
 sponsored rummage sales.

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                                                                                                                 46
                              Obstacles Overcome       Program Contact
At the recycling center, a wide
range of services can be found:
a redemption center for bot-
tles, donated as a source of
revenue for the center; a yard
waste composting operation;
and Goodwill and Salvation
Army depots, with an attend-
ant in the Goodwill trailer. The
book exchange is also a popu-
lar hangout for residents!
The Wellesley recycling pro-
gram works, and it has always
worked! Nonetheless, there
are the complaints that recy-
cling takes too much time and
that separate storage bins take
up too much space in the
home. To overcome these
complaints, the center relies
on its information and educa-
tion program. Not only does
the public works staff go to the
schools, they provide commu-
nity presentations and promote
recycling regularly.
For further information about
Wellesley's program, contact
Maurice "Pat" Berdan at
(617) 235-7600 or write to

 M.R. Berdan, Director
 Wellesley Department of Public
   Works
 455 Worcester Street
 P.O. Box 81364
 Wellesley, MA 02181
                       Recycle. Join the Team!
                                                            Pat Berdan offers this
                                                            advice: "Wellesley's
                                                            success is due to a
                                                            combination of
                                                            environmental awareness
                                                            of the townspeople, their
                                                            desire to conserve scarce
                                                            resources, and their
                                                            recognition that the town
                                                            benefits financially  by its
                                                            recycling operation."

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                                                                                                              47
Wilton, New Hampshire
Type of Program
Community Overview     Background
                             Program Description
Mandatory, material separa-
tion at drop-off center.
Wilton and the towns of    .
Greenfield, Greenville, Lynde-
borough, Mason, and Temple,
New Hampshire, built the Wil-
ton Recycling Center in 1979.
It serves nearly 80 percent of
the 9,000 residents of this rural
area. The center requires resi-
dents to drop off their sepa-
rated trash free of charge. The
residents' other option is to
pay for curbside pickup.
 A stone quarry in Wilton
 evolved from an old swimming
 hole to an unpleasant dump.
 By 1976, the town acknowl-
 edged that something needed
 to be done. With its neighbor-
 ing towns, Wilton cleaned up
 the dump and created the Re-
 cycling Center on its site.

 The six towns agreed to share
 expenses as well as revenues,
 based on population. They also
 passed ordinances in 1978 re-
 quiring the separation of waste
 prior to its being left at the cen-
 ter. Most of the residents were
 already dropping off their
 trash.

 Opened in 1979, the Recycling
 Center cost about $360,000 to
 construct. The four-acre site is
 set up with stations receiving a
 variety of recyclables. The fa-
cility recycles 45 percent of the
waste, burns 43 percent in an
on-site incinerator, and land-
fills the remaining 12 percent,
including ash.
               enter accepts
 all household wastes. Cans,
 glass, paper, plastic and metal
 are recycled. Trash catego-
 rized for incinerating, landfill-
 ing, and composting must be
 kept separate as well. There is
 a charge to dispose of some
 items, such as tires and demo-
.lition waste. And compost and
 Wood chips prepared at the
 center are offered for sale.

 Workers at the "low-tech"
 Center compress and bale
 papers and cans. Glass is
 crushed, and plastic jugs are
 ground up. Industries in the
 area purchase most of these
.^materials.

 The Wilton district spends
 only about $36 a ton to dispose
 of its waste. And in 1986, the
'District sold $26,000 worth of
 recycled material.
  The regional center
 recycles 45 percent of
 the waste it receives.

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 Information
                                                                                                                           50
For more information about re-
cycling and for additional cop-
ies of Recycling Works.', call v  ,
the EPA Solid Waste Hotline  "
at 1-800-424-9346. InD.C., call
382-3000.

Following is a list of state recy-
cling offices:

 ALABAMA
Department of Environmental
     Management
Solid Waste Division
1715 Congressman Wm. Dickinson
     Drive
Montgomery, AL 36130
(205)271-7700

 ALASKA
Department of Environmental
     Conservation
Solid Waste Program
P.O. Box 0
Junoau,AK 99811-1800
(907)465-2671

 ARIZONA
 Department of Environmental
     Quality -O.W.P.
Waste Planning Section, 4th Floor
 Phoenix, AZ 85004
 (602)257-2317

 ARKANSAS
 Department of Pollution Control
     and Ecology
 Solid Waste Division
 8001 National Drive
 Uttia Rock, AK 72219
 (501)562-7444
 CALIFORNIA
Recycling Division
Department of Conservation
81919th Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916)323-3743

 COLORADO
Department of Health
4210 E. 11th Avenue
Denver, CO 80220
(303)320-4830

 CONNECTICUT
Recycling Program
Department of Environmental
    Protection
Hartford, CT 06106
(203)566-8722

 DELAWARE
 Department of Natural Resources
    and Environmental Control
 89 Kings Highway
 P.O. Box 1401
 Dover, DE19903
 (302)736-4794

 DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
 Public Space and Maintenance
     Administration
 4701 Shepard Parkway, S.W.
 Washington, DC 20032
 (202)767-8512

 FLORIDA
 Department of Environmental
     Regulation
 2600 Blairstone Road
 Tallahassee, FL 32201
 (904)488-0300

 GEORGIA
 Department of Community Affiars
 40 Marietta St. N.W., 8th Floor
 Atlanta, GA 30303
 (404)656-3898
 HAWAII
Litter Control Office
Department of Health
205 Koula Street
Honolulu, HI 96813
(808)548-3400

 IDAHO
Department of Environmental
    Quality
Hazardous Materials Bureau
450 W. State Street
Boise, ID 83720
(208)334-5879

 ILLINOIS
Illinois EPA
Land Pollution Control Division
2200 Churchill Road
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, IL 62706
 (217) 782-6761

 INDIANA
 Office of Solid and Hazardous
     Waste Management
 Department of Environmental
     Management
 105 S. Meridian Street
 Indianapolis, IN 46225
 (317)232-8883

 IOWA
 Department of Natural Resources
 Waste Management Division
 Wallace State Office Building
 Des Moines, IA 50319
 (515)281-8176

 KANSAS
 Bureau of Waste Management
 Department of Health and
      Environment
 Topeka.KS 66620
 (913)296-1594
KENTUCKY
Resources Management Branch
Division of Waste Management
18 Reilly Road
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502)564-6716

LOUISIANA
Department of Environmental
    Quality
P.O. Box 44307
Baton Rouge, LA 70804
(504)342-1216

MAINE
Office of Waste Reduction and
    Recycling
Department of Economic and
    Community Development
State House Station #130
Augusta,  ME 04333
(207)289-2111

 MARYLAND
Department of Environment
Hazardous and Solid Waste
     Administration
2500 Broening Highway
Building  40
Baltimore, MD 21224
(301)631-3343

 MASSACHUSETTS
Division of Solid Waste
     Management
D.E.Q.E.
1 Winter Street, 4th Floor
 Boston, MA 02108
 (617)292-5962

  MICHIGAN
 Waste Management Division
 Department of Natural Resources
 P.O. Box 30028
 Lansing, Ml 48909
 (517)373-0540

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                                                                                                                             51
MINNESOTA
 Pollution Control Agency
 520 Lafayette Road
 St. Paul, MN 55155
 (612)296-6300

MISSISSIPPI
 Non-Hazardous Waste Section
 Bureau of Pollution Control
 Department of Natural Resources
 P.O. Box 10385
 Jackson. MS 39209
 (601)961-5047

MISSOURI
 Department of Natural Resources
 P.O. Box 176
 Jefferson City, MO 65102
 (314)751-3176

MONTANA
 Solid Waste Program
 Department of Health and
     Environmental Science
 Cogswell Building, Room B201
 Helena, MT 59620
 (406)444-2821

NEBRASKA
 Litter Reduction and Recycling
     Programs
 Department of Environmental
     Control
 P.O. Box 98922
 Lincoln, NE 68509
 (402)471-4210

NEVADA
 Energy Extension Service
 Office of Community Service
 1100 S.Williams Street
 Carson City, NV 89710
 (702)885-4420
NEW HAMPSHIRE
 Waste Management Division
 Department of Environmental
      Services
 6 Hazen Drive
 Concord, NH 03301
 (603) 271-2900

NEWJERSEY
 Office of Recycling
 Department of Environmental
      Protection
 CN414
 401 E. State Street
 Trenton, NJ 08625
 (609)292-0331

NEW MEXICO
 Solid Waste Section
 Environmental Improvement
     Division
 1190 St. Francis Drive    '
 Sante Fe, NM 87503
 (505) 457-2780

NEW YORK
 Bureau of Waste Reduction and
     Recycling
 Department of Environmental
     Conservation
 50 Wolf Road, Room 208
 Albany, NY 12233
 (518)457-7337

NORTH CAROLINA
 Solid Waste Management Branch
 Department of Human Resources
 P.O. Box 2091
 Raleigh, NC 27602
 (919)733-0692

NORTH DAKOTA
 Division of Waste Management
 Department of Health
 1200 Missouri Avenue, Room 302
 Box 5520
 Bismark, ND 58502-5520
 (701)224-2366
OHIO
 Division of Litter Prevention and
     Recycling
 Ohio EPA
 Fountain Square Building, E-1
 Columbus, OH 43224
 (614)265-7061

OKLAHOMA
 Solid Waste Division
 Department of Health
 1000 N.E. 10th Street
 Oklahoma City, OK 73152
 (405)271-7159

OREGON
 Department of Environmental
     Quality
 811S.W. Sixth
 Portland, OR 97204
 (503)229-5913

PENNSYLVANIA
 Waste Reduction and Recycling
     Section
 Division of Waste Minimization and
     Planning
 Department of Environmental
     Resources
 P.O. Box 2063
 Harrisburg, PA 17120
 (717)787-7382

RHODE ISLAND
 Office of Environmental
     Coordination
 Department of Environmental
     Management
 83 Park Street
 Providence, Rl 02903
 (401)277-3434
SOUTH CAROLINA
  Department of Health and
      Environmental Control
  2600 Bull Street
  Columbia, SC 29201
  (803)734-5200

SOUTHDAKOTA
  Energy Office
  217-1/2 West Missouri
  Pierre, SD 57501
  (605)773-3603

TENNESSEE
  Department of Public Health
  Division of Solid Waste
      Management
  Customs House, 4th Floor
  701 Broadway
  Nashville TN37219-S403
  (615)741-3424

TEXAS
  Division of Solid Waste
      Management
  Department of Health
  1100 W. 49th Street
 Austin TX 78756
 (512)458-7271

UTAH
 Bureau of Solid and Hazardous
     Waste
 Department of Environmental
     Health
 P.O. Box 16690
 Salt Lake City, UT 84116-0690
 (801)538-6170

VERMONT
 Agency of National Resources
 103 S. Main Street, West Building
 Waterbury.VT 05676
 (802)244-8702

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                                                                                                                         52l
 VIRGINIA
Department of Waste Management
Division of Litter Control and
    Recycling
11th Floor, Monroe Bulding
101N. 14th Street
Richmond, VA 23219
1-800-Keeptt

 WEST VIRGINIA
Department of Natural Resources
Conservation, Education, and Litter
    Control
1800 Washington Street E.
Charleston, WV2S305
(304)343-3370

 WASHINGTON
Department of Ecology
Mail Stop PV-11
Olympia.WA 95804
1-800-RecycIe

 WISCONSIN
Department of Natural Resources
P.O. Box 7921
Madison, WI53707
(608)266-5741

 WYOMING
Solid Waste Management Program
Department of Environmental
    Quality
Herschler Building
122 W. 25th Street
Cheyenne, WY 82002
(307)777-7752
                                                                                               The Office of Solid Waste
                                                                                               thanks the recycling
                                                                                               program managers, who
                                                                                               contributed valuable time
                                                                                               and materials to this
                                                                                               project.
                                      U.  S.  GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1991 0 - 300-133 QL 3

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