New Receptacles Encourage Recycling

After 65-gallon recycling carts were distributed in six Bowie neighborhoods as part of a pilot program, the city collected 28 percent more recyclables than it did in the smaller blue bins, according to city Public Works Director James Henrikson.

The wheeled carts, with an attached lid, are much larger than the 22-gallon containers residents in the rest of the city still use.

Now, the city may spend $860,000 over three years to distribute the carts city-wide in effort to increase recycling.

The estimated cost would be $295,000 in fiscal year 2012, $280,000 in 2013 and $285,000 in 2014, according to a memo by Henrikson.

“Our feeling is given the revenue pressures on the budget, spreading it out over three years makes a lot of sense, given the significant cost factor,” City Manager David Deutsch said.

But Henrikson estimated that the revenue from recycling and the money saved in taking less material to the landfill would be about $636,000 over the 10-year life expectancy of the carts.

In addition to the cost, Henrikson outlined the environmental benefits.

“We will be reducing the future use of limited landfill space. Increasing recycling will reduce the amount of natural resources and pollution that would be associated with producing non-recycled products,” Henrikson wrote.

Mayor G. Fred Robinson said there was a consensus among the city council to consider the expansion as the city council begins work on the 2012 budget in the spring.

"Right now I would be supportive of a three year phase-in and my assumption is that others support it as well," Robinson said.

The city distributed the carts to 1556 homes in Saddlebrook East, Chapel Forge, Overbrook, Yorktown, Idlewild and Victoria Heights as part of an initial pilot program to determine if the containers would raise recycling rates. Residents received information about the program before the carts were distributed in September.

Recycled materials were weighed from June 24 through Sept. 10 before the carts were distributed and again after the carts were distributed from Sept. 30 through Nov. 19.

According to Henrikson, the city collected an additional 15.5 tons of recycled material after the carts were distributed.

The total cost of the pilot program was paid for by a U.S. Department of Energy grant.

An additional 330 carts were distributed in Saddlebrook West after the city received more grant money, but the neighborhood was not included in the pilot program.

At large City Councilman Dennis Brady expressed concern during Tuesday’s meeting about a proposal to outfit each of the three recycling trucks with equipment that would read tags embedded in each cart and download information on recycling rates citywide.

“My only concern would be that information used not be tied house to house, but street by street or subdivision by subdivision,” Brady said. “If it is going to be to that level, I have some concerns about the use of the information.”

Deutsch said city staff has discussed such privacy concerns.

 “We want to use the data in a way that is helpful for the whole program, not to single out folks who may or may not be participating to the fullest,” Deutsch said.  

Overbrook resident Joyce Correll is pleased to have the larger recycling bin.

“I have noticed we do recycle more because the bin is huge and everything seems to fit,” Correll said. “Before, I would get lazy and just throw it away if our small bin filled up.”