Residential
Paper
Recovery
A community
action
program

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Residential

paper  recovery

This book has been written to help you
encourage your fellow citizens to par-
ticipate in an environmental program of
both local and national importance -
the conservation of energy and fiber
resources through the recycling of
wastepaper. It tells you how to promote
a program in your community, once you
have made the decision to implement
newspaper recycling. We assume that
your city, town, or county has thoroughly
analyzed key factors such as market
A community
action program
availability (solid contracts), collection
procedures, and overall economics in
making this decision.* Our purpose is to
help you gain community support and
participation in the program.

This guide is written for a number of
different audiences, and we hope you
are among those it may serve. For the
city official, here are some ideas for
effectively publicizing a source separa-
tion program. For a civic organization
unfamiliar with this kind of activity,  this
can be a roadmap, while the civic
organization with some expertise should
find some additional ideas that will  be
helpful.
Source separation of newsprint is a
unique and increasingly important
endeavor. We hope that you will read
this manual if only to get a feel for the
scope of the task you or your organiza-
tion are undertaking.
 See Residential Paper Recovery: A Municipal
 Implementation Guide (SW-155), Washington,
 D.C. U.S. Government Printing Office, 1975.
           "I Conserves Resources

           O Saves Money

           "Z Easy To Do
              Makes
              Environmental
              Sense

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Why a source
separation program?
Today, tomorrow, soon —your com-
munity may embark on a source
separation of newsprint program.
Whether this is a voluntary program or a
mandatory program legislated by your
local governing body, the problem before
you is the same. You are ready to start a
newspaper recycling program, and you
want your townspeople primed to bundle
newspapers and put them out for
collection; you must find an effective
method of informing local citizens about
the program and gaining their co-
operation.
“Source separation of newsprint” is a
long-winded title, but it accurately
describes the program you want to start
— that is, the separation of newsprint
(or mixed paper if that is what your city
has contracted to sell the paper pur-
chaser) from your trash and garbage at
the source (your own home) where it is
put out for collection (on the curb).
Implementing this is a major undertaking
for your community because it will
require your fellow citizens to do some-
thing they have not done before; they
must also change an old habit — in this
case an uneconomical, throwaway habit.
You are not alone. More than 120 other
communities across the country have
begun and are now operating source
separation programs with success. You
will be able to benefit from their
experiences in this kind of effort.
You will be faced with a lot of questions.
Experience has shown that newspaper
collection programs such as the one
contemplated in your community gen-
erate much enthusiasm, energy and
support; it is a good thing to do. There
will be some skeptics around, however,
and why not? Some cities have sus-
pended programs because they could not
sell paper. (You have hopefully elimin-
ated that problem by obtaining a sound
contract with a guaranteed floor price.)
Other cities may not have had a high
level of participation on a continuous
basis. The suggestions in this brochure
will help assure high participation rates
in your community. Don’t try to fool any-
one, just let them know that you have a
well planned program and have ad-
dressed all of the important factors. (We
assume you have!) You should be ready
to face the person who asks: “Does all
this really make sense?”
Some basic reasons for implementing
source separation of paper that your
community should be aware of are:
• It has environmental and conserva-
tion benefits. Newsprint comes from
valuable resources — our forests.
Less virgin timber is needed as a
newsprint resource, for the paper you
save today will be reused to make
other paper products. Less pollution
is generated when recycled paper is
used instead of virgin timber.
• It saves energy. Recycling materials
to produce new paper products is less
energy consumptive than processing
virgin materials.
• It can save money. It is costly for
your community to burn or bury its
municipal solid waste. By separating
out the newspapers, you have a
smaller disposal problem and you
receive money for something that it
would otherwise cost you money to get
rid of. You may be able to do this with
a minimal increase in collection costs,
and, thus, save money.
• It is easy. Most of us separate news-
print anyway. Few people toss news-
papers in with other disposables in
the home. You’ll find a stack of news-
papers on top of the refrigerator or Ofl
the back porch of thousands of homes
— awaiting a trip to the curb to be
thrown away on the weekly collection!
• It creates a positive environmental
image. It gives people a chance to
take a positive environmental step in
their own homes — something they
usually want to do but don’t know how
to go about.
The last pages of this book will give you
some answers to the questions most
commonly asked about recycling.
How should you begin to publicize and
successfully implement your new pro-
gram? The rest of this manual is in-
tended to help you determine just that.

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‘II L / y ll I w 1 -’

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Who is going
to get it done?
Don’t shudder and make jokes about the
word “committee.” The toughest part of
stirring public awareness (and thus
participation) for community action such
as a source separation program is find-
ing an individual or group of individuals
willing to form a committee and carry
the responsibilty and leadership for a
successful outcome. Finding responsible
leadership is the first important step that
must be taken.
Let’s face it — most communities have
limited resources at their disposal. The
municipal governing body is small. The
sanitation chief has street workers and
few office workers. The mayor or town
manager has dozens of equally serious
issues making demands on his time. You
probably cannot afford to hire a paid
publicity director or a public relations
firm, but there really is no need to do so.
Your community is just like the dozens
of others across the country who’ve had
successful programs — without pro-
fessional help. You have a wealth of
energy and talent available in the public-
minded citizens and civic groups in your
town.
Let’s follow this scenario, as your com-
munity is now committed to taking the
big step:
1. The Mayor calls a meeting of con-
cerned civic, professional and fraternal
organizations in your community.
2. He spells out the goals of the pro-
gram, and tells how the collection
system will work.
3. He asks that those present form a
Steering Committee to get the program
organized for public understanding.
4. Out of that Steering Committee one
organization should emerge which is
willing to take the lead.

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There is an almost unlimited number of
organizations to choose from: environ-
mental and conservation groups,
Jaycees, the Chamber of Commerce,
business and professional women’s
groups, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, League
of Women Voters, American Association
of University Women, the PTA, future
farmers, Rotary, Seratoma, 4-H,
Kiwanis, Rur ’.an, etc. Since your goal is
total community involvement in this
program, the more that different groups
participate in the drive, the better. You
should expect cooperation from the
business community, news media,
schools and other groups — utilize it.
Once you have found an effective leader,
there are many possible ways of dividing
the labor. For instance, one organization
could assume responsibility for the
kick-off and the first six months of the
campaign. Another organization should
then take charge for the following six
months. Or one organization may choose
to take the lead in the program on a per-
manent basis, while others carry out
monthly or bi-monthly information
drives. For example, the PTA could
sponsor a recycle poster contest in
September and October, the Scouts
could carry out a town-wide door hanger
campaign in April and May, and so on.
Spread the work around — the burden
should not fall entirely on any one
organization.
A
F

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How will the
word get out?
Newspapers
You are not going to supersede Walter
Cronkite, and you’re not going to rush
in and say “stop the presses!” You may
not be a professional public affairs
director — but don’t disregard your
experience as chairperson of last year’s
publicity committee or author of the
“Mudsplasher” column in the high
school paper. Draw upon whatever
public-contact skills you have; it will all
help. The two most important things to
concentrate on are knowledge of your
facts and organizing your committee to
contact the key people who will be
willing and able to publicize your
campaign.
There are several outlets of importance
to you as you get ready to publicize the
sourde separation effort:
• Newspapers
• Radio Stations
. Television Stations
• Merchants and Business Leaders
• Schools
Local newspapers are an excellent
means of reaching the public. News-
paper editors will be interested in this
community effort for several reasons. In
the first place, they thrive on local news,
and secondly they are distributing the
product you are about to have collected
and recycled.
The person you should contact is the
city editor. The best approach is to
make an appointment to see him. This
is a necessary courtesy and is the only
way to ensure you will be given proper
consideration. During your meeting, be
prepared to describe the program, but
also bring along a written fact sheet
giving the essentials. (A sample of what
information to include is listed below.)
You should approach the editor before
an official announcement of the program
has been made — that way you will have
better coverage from the start. Probably
he has heard that the community is
considering a source separation pro-
gram, but it is unlikely he will know
much more than that. Present him with
all of the facts before the official
announcement (which is most likely to
be made in a press conference in City
Hall). Inform him that you will assume
responsibility as the point of contact
between the newspaper and the pro-
gram, and that you will be touching base
with him as things develop. You can offer
to write the first press releases, or he
may prefer to cover the press conference
and have a reporter write the story.
There are several useful tools you
should have at your disposal:
1. Fact Sheet. The fact sheet should
give: Days of collection(s), amount to
be picked up (estimated tonnage),
routes and neighborhoods, prices ex-
pected and profit, how pickups will be
conducted (are trucks being con-
verted?), whether to leave outside in
rain (yes), how to bundle, who heads the
drive (city and your organization), is it
voluntary or mandatory, who to contact
for information, etc. You will have to
ferret out this information from the city
government.
2. Press release.There is nothing magic
about a press release. All you need is a
clear statement giving the “Who, What,
When, Where, and Whys” you learned
about in high school journalism. For
example:
“Mayor John Brown announced today
that Mapleton Township will begin a
drive March 1 to pick up bundled news-
papers from all local households.
“Citizens will be asked to bundle and tie
papers separately for a special pickup
every Friday. Bundles should be left —
rain or shine — at the curbside where
other trash is usually picked up.
“Mayor Brown said in a news conference
that several civic organizations will
sponsor the newspaper pickup effort
here. The Business and Professional
Women’s Club will serve as publicity
coordinators for the first six months.
Ms. Susan Williams will be chairperson.
“Mayor Brown said the city has signed
a two-year contract with Acme Scrap
Paper Company and Acme will buy the
newspapers at an average price of $15
per ton. He estimates the city will pick
up 16 tons a month. Proceeds from the
program will be returned to the city’s
general fund.
“Not only will Mapleton receive revenues
from the program, the Major said, ‘but
we will be sending newspapers to plants
to be recycled.’
“He also pointed out that disposal costs
at the Glenhill landfill site will be

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reduced. Newspapers make up about siX
Percent of Map leton’s solid waste.”
That’s a sample. You’re simply ‘telling it
like it is.’ Stick to the facts. The city
editor will clean it up for you.
It is very important to properly time the
release of your story. Be aware of the
deadlines of the newspapers you are
Working with. If you have an afternoon
paper in your town, mark your news for
release at 10 a.m. If you have a morning
paper, make it 6 p.m. If you have both,
rotate releases fairly, giving the first to
One paper, the second to the other, and
SO Ofl. If you have a weekly newspaper,
make certain to submit your material
well in advance of the copy deadline.
3. Photographs. Pictures can serve as
all-important attention getters. There are
many ways you can publicize the new
program through pictures — perhaps
show the Mayor signing a proclamation,
youngsters putting out doorhangers, or
trucks being converted to carry bundles.
Use your imagination. The name of the
game is awareness. (Don’t forget to use
these same ideas for your local tele-
vision station. Even a regional station —
if you don’t have one of your own —
ought to give you coverage.)
There are other things you should dis-
cuss with the city editor. Discuss the
timing of the Mayor’s press conference
(there ought to be one), ask about some
photographs before the program actually
begins and tell him you’ll alert him to
other photographic opportunities.
You should be prepared to call the editor
as soon as possible after the first collec-
tion day and tell him how well it went.
Be honest. If it went badly, let him help
you inform the public so the next collec-
tion will be better. Work with sanitation
or collection officials in keeping good
records, perhaps including a graph or a
barometer which can be reproduced.
When it comes to continuing coverage,
the city editor ought to be asked about
“teasers” or “reminders.” Suggest that
he put a little box on the front page
which says “Tomorrow is Bundle-Day,”
or “Bundle Me Today for Pick-Up
Tomorrow,” or something of the sort.
Be reliable and use your creativity. The
local newspaper editor can be your ally.
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How will the
word get out?
Rod Ic
Radio is a different story. You are going
to have to do most of the work. Local
radio stations have large areas to cover
and few people to go around.
The key person to contact here is the
station manager. Give him the same
information you gave the city editor. The
station manager — or news director —
will take the same press release. Mark a
time for release on it, and give it to both
the newspaper and radio station at the
same time. Avoid playing favorites. Make
certain the timing of all releases is the
same for all, and don’t deal in exclusives.
Radio is very important to you since it
has a vast audience, so take advantage
of the possibilities before you. Ask the
station manager if you can write a few
10-second and 30-second public service
spot announcements for him.
For example:
“Tomorrow is Pick-Up Day in Mapleton.
Join your fellow citizens in putting you,
newspapers at the curbside by 9 a.m.”
or
“WXXX reminds you that Friday is pick-
up day for bundled newspapers. Put
them at your curbside by 9 a.m. Join this
civic effort and help cut costs and
preserve our environment.”
Ask the station manager if you can bring
in several personalities well known in
your community to tape spot announce-
ments. These can be used over and over
again and are called — as are the ones
above — public service announcements.
For instance:
“This is Mayor John Brown. Mapleton
has launched a drive to pick up your
bundled newspapers every Friday. We
urge you to join in this effort. Remember
— pick-ups are every Friday.”

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— Tomorrow — Put Out Your Bundled
Newspapers.” These can be used at
station breaks between programs.
You can also ask for a few public service
announcements, such as the ones we
used previously with Mayor Brown. This
time, of course, the television station
will film it for viewing. Look for identifi-
able people for both radio and television
spots. In addition to the mayor, think in
terms of personalities people know,
such as a local sports hero, a well known
writer or artist, the conductor of your
symphony, or the president of the
chamber of commerce.
Te1ev s on
As we mentioned, the photographic
ideas for newspapers are duplicative for
television, if you have local television. If
you have regional television, they’re
likely to at least give you one good kick-
off story because the story of your
community’s effort is of significance to
other communities in the area.
The local television station will use the
same press release you give newspapers
or radio stations. Again, make that
personal call first, establish your
credentials, and pin down your contact
at the station. In this case, first see the
news director.
If you have a local station, see if the
station will give you some “promo”
time — i.e., let you paint (or do it them-
selves) some cards which tell your story
I

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How will the
word get out?
Merchonts
Local merchants are of vital importance,
both for the audience they reach
through displays in their windows, and
for the materials and resources they
may be willing to donate.
Most merchants are willing to display
public service posters in their store
windows, and some will even allow you
to set up a display in the store. Also, you
should ask them to place public service
reminders in their advertisements.
Merchants may also wish to donate
materials to your cause. Perhaps a local
printer will print some posters or door-
hangers, or the stationery store may
provide your committee with supplies.
Don’t be shy about asking for donations,
for money plays an important part in this
whole drive. Financial matters should be
clarified in the early planning stages
when the program is being discussed
with community officials. You should
expect typewriter paper, postage and
mimeographing to be supplied by the
community governing body. If you want
other supplies, such as bumper stickers

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and posters, a modest outlay of money
will be required. Should your organiza-
tion pick up the tab, or will the muni-
cipality commit itself financially? If the
community commits a portion of the first
month’s revenues (on sales), that will
cover expenses. If they choose not to,
however, your group will have to decide
whether or not to ask local merchants
for financial support.
Explore the possibilities before you.
When we talk of merchants, we are
thinking in the broadest terms. For
example, consider the utilities which
send their bills to almost everyone in
town. You may want to ask the water
department, the power company and the
telephone company to include a
reminder with the monthly bill.
fll

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Schools
Schools are another excellent channel
for disseminating information. See the
superintendent of schools and work out
a program for introducing information
about your program into the classroom.
There are many different ways in which
to teach children about the program and
gain their interest and cooperation.
Among the things you may want to try:
—Sponsor a field day at the landfill or
incinerator
—Sponsor an essay contest (“Why we
should recycle newspapers”)
—Sponsor a poster contest
—Sponsor a logo contest
—Arrange to have school children put
up doorh angers and pass out
posters
—Let the child himself take home a
reminder
—Remind the child himself, for he’s
likely to carry the bundle out
anyway.
Remember, parents are motivated by
children. An active campaign conducted
in the schools will undoubtedly have an
impact in the home, and also will tie the
program to youngsters who are in-
terested in participating.
How will the
word get out?
/

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Finally
There are many small but important
tricks to running a successful publicity
campaign. For instance, a good program
is likely to be one with a catchy, mem-
orable slogan. “Bundle Up,” or “Bundle
Up Every Friday” adequately makes the
point, but try to think of something more
imaginative that will catch people’s
attention.
A recurring theme is important, and this
should be used as much as possible in
every phase of the program. Most
important of all is to try to generate
enthusiasm and make these pick-ups a
part of the fabric of the community. How
can this be done?
—perhaps a retailer will string a
banner across Main Street
—ask the city to paint trash cans with
a message and/or logo
—encourage participating and non-
participating civic clubs to remind
members of the pick-ups.
A hundred ideas should come to you.
In the next section, we will tell you what
some other communities are doing.
It can’t be overstressed that someone
(maybe one or more civic groups) must
commit themselves to running this
campaign, and not just for a couple of
months. You need a good leader who is
responsible, dependable, and one who
will work.

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Whendol
get started?
It is really up to you, your committee,
and the city leaders to decide how you
kick off this campaign. What you are
about to embark on is one of the most
important civic efforts ever undertaken
in your community. One word of advice:
make it big! Don’t hide this light under
the proverbial bushel. If you don’t tell
the public, they are not going to get told.
The message has to come across loud
and clear over and over again. We are
trying to change habits.
As a start, we would suggest you hold a
major news conference with the mayor
and town council — or city council or
council commissioners or whatever you
call your group. To date, the following
steps have been taken:
1. The mayor had his meeting with
the civic groups.
2. Out of that, your group was picked
to lead off in the campaign.
3. You have gathered all of the facts,
produced a fact sheet (that is now
approved by the community em-
ployee in charge of the program).
4. You have visited the editors and
station managers.
5. You have distributed the press
releases — all to be held until the
press conference.
6. The mayor now makes that
announcement at a press con-
ference attended by city officials,
civic leaders, and others.
7. Reporters are there. Tape record-
ers are on. Television cameras
turn.
8. Posters have been distributed.
9. School officials have been
notified.
10. And the program begins.
Are you finished? Not at all. You have
made a beginning, but it’s just a begin-
ning. Ultimately, what you are trying to
do is change habits, mindless wasteful
habits which we have been able to
afford in the past but can no longer.
You may congratulate yourself on what
has been done, but wait to see what the
returns are before you relax; you may
want to follow up the initial publicity
drive with other kinds of information.
Perhaps a speakers’ bureau is neces-
sary, or the sanitation chief may want to
call on schools. You may also want to
write to EPA for more information on
what is happening elsewhere, and write
a few feature articles in your local news-
paper. There is a world of possibility
lying before you as you approach this
publicity drive, but only you can make it
effective through your efforts. Will your
community run a successful source
separation of newsprint program? The
bundle is in your lap.

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Follow-up
History — even the brief history we have
in source separation programs — tells
us that a good kick-off does not neces-
sarily produce long lasting results.
You can expect a flurry — but the flame
can die if you are not innovative and
creative in the follow-up effort.
It may seem rather simple on the sur-
face: once people begin separating
newsprint and putting it out week after
week, a habit is formed.
There should be an old proverb which
goes something like this: “Habits are
made to be broken.” Since we know of
none, we’ve invented the above. We are
trying to make the point that you’ve got
to work at this business constantly to
get a program rolling and to keep it
rolling.
How do you do it?
Here are a few thoughts:
• Involve as many people and groups
as you can from the outset.
Participation is what you need. Give
every organization a role.
• Involve local businesses. Think of
new ways to stuff envelopes into
bills. Look hard at employee
publications.
• Design a certificate of merit — for
groups or individuals.
• Make sure certain editors don’t
forget you. Give them “news,” such
as tonnage collected. Paint a
barometer that can stand on the
town square, courthouse lawn, or
in front of city hail. Each week paint
the rise in tonnage.
• Get a television crew to ride a
pick-up vehicle.
• After a month of pick-ups, give a
dollars and cents figure (either on
savings or actual sales). Don’t, of
course, give the impression the
program Is going to be a money-
maker.
• Develop a “theme” for pick-up
day(s) — and repeat it in a sing-
song way on radio, television and
small drop-in newspaper ads (all
free).
• Send notices home with school
children.
• Maintain a program of continuing
publicity. Your program needs more
than a one-time publicity shot to be
successful.
• Put some of your financial resources
into a part-time program co-
ordinator.
• Paint your trucks with a logo, color,
slogan, etc.
We’ve covered some of this ground
before. The most important thing to
remember is that you’ve got to work at
it week after week. Develop a sense of
movement, a sense of accomplishment,
a sense of civic pride and a sense of
purpose.

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Program ideas
and suggestions
Here are some ideas you may want to
adopt. Variations have been used in a
number of cities:
• A banner across Main Street
designating pick-up days and other
necessary information.
• Calendars with pick-up days
marked.
Brochures.
• Bumper stickers.
• Inserts for bills — water, gas or
electric, plus private industry such
as department stores and telephone
bills.
• Flyers to give to school children.
• Fillers for newspapers. A page of
one-liners to be set by newspapers
and dropped in to justify column
lengths.
• Doorhangers. A card with a hole
to be placed on doorknobs as
reminders. Boy Scouts, 4-H’ers or
others should take on as a project.
• Maps to be distributed. These can
be important when pick-up days are
different for locations in a com-
munity.
• Billboards. Merchants should in-
clude reminders on their handbill
sheets.
• Advertisers may be willing to drop
in reminders in their own display
advertising.
• Merchants and the community
offices could print a line across the
bottom of stationery.
• Use color. People identify with
colors. Example: Marblehead,
Mass., uses white and green; while
Somervile uses yellow and orange.
Color provides instant recall.
• Conduct a logotype (trademark)
contest. Have merchants give prizes
for the best logo design as deter-
mined by a panel of judges. Logo
can be used in all publicity
materials.
• Have a slogan contest.
• Develop a slide presentation. Pass it
around to various community
groups for orientations and brief-
ings.
• Invest in standard sized containers
for use in the community. Example:
University City, Mo.
• Place displays in windows of stores
urging supportof the program.
As we mentioned before, use your
imagination.

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You will get a
lot of questions
You may as well face it. You will get a
lot of questions about your community
paper recovery program. Here are
samples of the most common questions
asked with some suggested answers.
0. How do you want us to bundle our
newspapers?
A. Tie them securely with string. You
may want to put them in a grocery
bag (if that is all right with your paper
purchaser) or place them in special
containers for curbside pick up.
Remember, no plastic bags!
0. How about magazines, comics and
books?
A. Magazines, books and comics have
contaminants which are not easily
removed in the recycling process and
can cause an economic loss. Put
them in with your regular trash and
garbage.
0. What about milk cartons and other
packaging?
A. Even if they were separated, they
would probably be contaminated and
difficult to use. Remember — news-
papers only.
0. How often are our newspapers
collected?
A. It depends on your community. How-
ever, collections may be monthly,
biweekly, or weekly. To achieve maxi-
mum cooperation from the house-
holder, collections must be conducted
on a regular basis.
0. What about rainy days?
A. Talk to your paper purchaser. Each
community has different guidelines.
Q. Suppose I forget, may I put them in
the normal trash collection next time
(if papers are collected on alternate
pick-ups)?
A. No. Save them until the next sched-
uled pick-up. We want to eliminate
newspapers from the trash and
garbage.
0. To whom do we sell the newspapers?
A. Communities usually sell their news-
papers to a paper purchaser for
baling and shipment to a recycling
mill.
Q. Will we make a profit?
A. The motive is not to make a profit, but
to reduce costs and to ease the
burden of disposal.
0. Will there be some savings?
A. Yes, there ought to be a reduction in
disposal costs in the long run. Source
separation and collection of news-
papers help to conserve a resource
with significant economic value.
0. What will the effect of the program be
on our present disposal system?
Landfill life?
A. There will be a definite savings in
disposal costs depending on the par-
ticipation in the program but each
community must compare its disposal
cost before and after the program is
initiated. The landfill life will be
extended. Again, it is difficult to esti-
mate how many years due to any
number of factors such as percentage
of community participation in the
newspaper recovery program,
whether the community has a shred-
der operation, etc. The reduction in
waste varies from community to com-
munity but on the average, news-
papers comprise about 6 percent of
total municipal solid wastes.
Q. How much newsprint is in our waste
stream?
A. The amount of discarded newspaper
varies from house to house, neighbor-
hood to neighborhood, and city to
city. This variation is related to such
factors as individual household pur-
chasing habits, size and number of
newspapers published in a particular
area, and education and income
levels. On a national average, how-
ever, newspapers comprise about 19
percent of discarded paper.

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Q. What other communities have similar
programs?
A. More than 120 cities in the United
States are now conducting separate
paper collection programs, while only
two such programs existed in 1970.
This significant increase is due to the:
(1) increase in disposal costs;
(2) increase in environmental aware-
ness and concern; (3) realization that
separate collections are more effec-
tive in removing materials from the
waste stream and far less costly than
recycling centers operated by muni-
cipal employees.
Q. How long will the program last?
A. Forever, we hope. Your community
may have entered into a long-term
contract for the sale of Its news-
papers. Once that contract termin-
ates, we hope it can be renewed. The
ultimate goal is for this program to
become a way of life.
0. How is the paper collected?
A. There are two basic methods for
separate paper collection presently
in use. The most common system
utilizes separate vehicles to collect
the paper, while the other method
uses a rack attached to the regular
refuse collection vehicle.*
0. Does this program increase the
collection time?
A. Yes, but the increments in time are
usually absorbed by the existing
collection system. The separate
collection system requires that more
hours be spent on the collection
route, but often this results in in-
creased utilization of existing equip-
ment and labor. It is important to
note that in all but two of ten cities
studied, no additional labor was hired
to implement separate collection. It
should also be noted that in every
case studied, three-man crews were
used only because it is standard
collection practice, whereas two-man
crews are sufficient for paper collec-
tion. The additional labor hours, and
thus cost, to the cities would have
been considerably less had they not
included the unneeded crewman.
Time—motion studies of the rack
system indicate that there is an
average of 14 seconds per stop, in
addition to 5 to 15 minutes required
for off-loading. In all cases studied,
no additional labor costs were actu-
ally experienced because employees
were not working a full day in normal
waste collection.
0. Isn’t it costly to make a separate
newspaper pick-up?
A. Additional collection time is required
to separately collect newspapers.
There may or may not be an in-
creased collection cost to the city
depending on whether collectors are
working full days for normal collec-
tion. It there are increased costs, they
must be balanced against the
revenues received for the paper and
the savings in disposal cost. We
assume that you have thoroughly
analyzed the economics of a source
separation program in your com-
munity and have found it to be cost-
effective. That is, you have deter-
mined that the benefits outweigh the
costs. You should be prepared to
discuss the specific factors that went
into your community’s decision, and
explain how the cost-effectiveness
was determined.
0. Is the program voluntary?
A. Depending on the community —yes
or no. Most separate collection pro-
grams are voluntary in that they
“request” citizen support. An
increasing number of cities, however,
are passing ordinances which
“require” separation. A recent study
of 17 cities found that mandatory
programs received cooperation
* See Residential Paper Recovery: A Municipal
Implementation Guide (SW-i 55), Washington,
D.C. U.S. Government Printing Office, 1975.

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from an average of 60 percent of the
population, while voluntary programs
had a participation rate of 30 percent.
Other data from the same study
indicate that participation rises over
time, and as these programs reach
the two- and three-year levels, the
relative differences between volun-
tary and mandatory programs will
diminish.
Q. What about citizens who don’t par-
ticipate in the program?
A. The voluntary or mandatory paper
recovery project should be explained
to all citizens through a thorough
community-wide education program.
There should be an appeal to the
individual to participate in the pro-
gram, to be part of his community, to
have pride and to work with other
individuals to reduce the quantity of
solid waste and to conserve a re-
source of significant economic value.
If the community has a mandatory
program, a responsible official should
explain the law and the program to
the non-participating individual. It is
unlikely that any individual will be
prosecuted under such a program, but
an energetic effort should be made to
obtain compliance through the educa-
tion process to have as much partici-
pation as possible in the program.
Q. How much additional time and cost
will the program bring to the house-
holder?
A. Home separation is neither time-
consuming nor expensive to the
householder. In a recent study, 15
families kept detailed records of the
separate bundling of newspapers. It
took less than three minutes (actually
2.3 minutes) per week and required
less than one cent per month in out-
of-pocket costs. A survey on house-
wives’ attitudes on solid waste found
that 73 percent of those interviewed
felt home separation of newspapers
would be “easy” to “very easy” for
them to carry out.
Q. Does our community have an anti-
scavenging ordinance? How will it be
enforced?
A. Check with the local official in charge
of your community’s program. Judicial
precedent indicates that in most
states it is permissible for municipali-
ties to grant exclusive contracts for
the collection of solid waste,
including bundled newspapers, and to
prohibit collection by all but city em-
ployees or licensees. This authority,
combined with the municipalities’
traditional power to protect public
health and safety, should provide a
legal basis for such an ordinance. For
example, the Town of Hempstead,
New York, passed an anti-scavenging
ordinance in 1971,which has been
used as a model in many communi-
ties. The ordinance states that all
waste placed at the curb becomes the
property of the city. Stringent fines
are imposed upon scavengers who
remove newspapers from the curb
and sell the bundles privately. Sani-
tary inspectors move through the area
carrying summonses that could bring
$250.00 fines and/or 15-day jail sen-
tences to violators. Strict enforcement
is strongly urged, particularly at the
beginning of the program. Also, as
much publicity as possible should be
given to enforcement efforts in order
to discourage potential offenders.
0. What happens if someone other than
the community collects our bundles?
A. Anti-scavenging ordinances do not
preclude volunteer groups — Boy
Scouts, schools and various civic,
charitable and religious organizations
— from collecting newspapers as one
of their traditional revenue producers.
If residents prefer to save their news-
papers for such volunteer drives, they
should not be discouraged from doing
so; however, to avoid confusion as to
the ownership of the material, accu-
mulated paper should not be set at
the curb. This distinction can be made
clear in the anti-scavenging ordinance
so that the paper drives of volunteer
groups are not threatened.

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Q. What about the storage requirements
for the newspapers?
A. If the paper purchaser is located
within a reasonable distance, the
collection crew may deliver papers
directly to the facility; in this event
there are no storage problems.
Distantly located paper purchasers
usually place a large van at a transfer
station. Collected papers are loaded
into this van until it is full, at which
time the paper purchaser removes it
and replaces it with another van.
0. What if the buyer of the separated
newspapers stops purchasing them or
lowers the price?
A. We assume that your community has
secured a sound contract with a
paper purchaser in which you are
guaranteed a floor or minimum price.
With this provision, you will be
assured of a reasonable market no
matter how the paper market
fluctuates. Sharply increased
production of paperboard in the first
quarter of 1976 is causing a tight
wastepaper supply situation at re-
cycling mills in every region of the
country, according to the American
Paper Institute. Production is
up about 30 percent over the same
1975 period and the demand is likely
to continue through the second and
third quarters of 1976. According to
weekly quotations in Official Board
Markets, it would appear that a floor
price of $15 per ton, F.O.B. a nearby
transfer point, should be able to cover
the costs of many newspaper
recovery collection programs.
0. Into what products are our news-
papers being recycled?
A. Along with other grades of waste-
paper, recycled newspapers con-
tribute to the production of a wide
variety of paper products including
newsprint. They are also used in
paperboard products such as cereal
boxes, record jackets, automobile
panelling, molded pulp products,
such as egg cartons, and in building
products such as roofing felt and
insulation materials.
r U.S.

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U.S. EPA, Region 1
Waste Management Branch
John F. Kennedy Bldg.
Boston, MA 02203
617-223-5775
EPA REGIONS
U.S. EPA, Region 2
Solid Waste Branch
26 Federal Plaza
New York, NY 10007
212-264-0503
U.S. EPA, Region 5
Waste Management Branch
230 South Dearborn St.
Chicago, IL 60604
312-353-2197
U.S. EPA, Region 8
Waste Management Branch
1860 Lincoln St.
Denver, CO 80295
303-837-2221
U.S. EPA, Region 3
Hazardous Materials Branch
6th and Walnut Sts.
Philadelphia. PA 19106
21 5-597- 7370
U.S. EPA, Region 9
Hazardous Materials Branch
215 Fremont St.
San Francisco, CA 94105
415-556-4606
U.S. EPA, Region 4
Residuals Management Br.
345 Courtland St., N.E.
Altanta, GA 30308
404-881-3016
U.S. EPA, Region 7
Hazardous Materials Branch
324 East 11th St.
Kansas City, MO 64108
816-374-3307
U.S. EPA, Region 10
Waste Management Branch
1200 6th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101
206-442-1260 -
a
9
o
2
U.S. EPA, Region 6
Solid Waste Branch
1201 Elm St.
Dallas, TX 75270
214-767-2645

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