County may choose bigger recycling containers
Rae KrugerMARSHALL - Lyon County residents could get a larger container to use for recycling, if the county and Waste Management can agree to a contract.
Lyon County environmental officer Paul Henriksen said Thursday he believes Waste Management will be receptive to replacing 18-gallon containers used for recycling with 65-gallon carts.
"I think they will be willing to put the larger containers out," Henriksen said. "It's a matter of negotiating a contract."
Henriksen asked the Lyon County Board of Commissioners Tuesday to consider the 65-gallon carts as a way to increase resident participation in single sort recycling.
Commissioners liked the idea and appointed board members Steve Ritter and Bob Fenske to a committee with Henriksen to negotiate a contract with Waste Management to replace the smaller containers with large containers.
The county has had single sort recycling for more than a year but it has produced disappointing results.
County officials hoped when residents only needed only to sort recyclable material from garbage, recycling rates would significantly increase.
The rates have only slightly increased.
"I was surprised," Henriksen said of the small increase. "We've heard of 20 to 30 to 40 percent increases in the amount of material collected."
People wanted single sort recycling but "we're just not seeing that increase," Henriksen said.
Lincoln County switched in 2007 to 65-gallon carts for residential recycling and saw a significant increase in the amount of material collected.
"The key is to make it convenient for users," Ritter said at Tuesday's meeting."Like Robert Olson, (environmental officer) did in Lincoln County about a year ago."
Waste Management could also save money by using 65 gallon containers, Henriksen said. The company could use an automated truck to pick up and dump the containers instead of using manual labor, Henriksen said.
The company may also consider stopping fewer times than weekly because people could keep more material in a 65-gallon cart, Ritter said.
If more people participate and recycle more items, Waste Management also has more material to use and sell, commissioners said.
Henriksen said Tuesday the board needs to know who owns the carts and exactly what size the carts would be, the frequency of collection and when a change could happen.
On Thursday, Henriksen said he hoped an agreement with Waste Management could be reached before the end of the year so new larger containers could be used at the start of 2009.
Contact Rae Kruger at rkruger@marshallindependent.com
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Deppfan
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08-22-08 10:52 AM
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A larger, covered container would be great. At least half of my garbage is paper and plastic.
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