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Let's talk trash: City streamlining recycling Sorting recyclables no longer necessary in Fredericksburg Date published: 11/1/2009
BY EMILY BATTLE
If you live in Fredericksburg, you'll soon see your recyclables dumped into what looks like a plain old garbage truck. That doesn't mean they're headed for the landfill, though. Sorting cans from bottles from newspapers used to be an enterprise that took up rows of plastic bins in many households. These days, though, a lot of sorting is done on giant conveyor belts by the companies that purchase municipal recyclable goods. The Rappahannock Regional Solid Waste Management Board--known as the "R-Board"--has been collecting recyclables in a single stream since August 2008, according to regional landfill superintendent Andrew Mikel. The R-Board serves Fredericksburg and Stafford County. Private haulers that use the regional landfill have been collecting single-stream recyclables since August 2008, but the city has been slower to adopt the new process because it needed a new truck to make the switch. The money for a new $115,000 compactor truck came from the R-Board. Some of it was a dividend from the methane gas operation the regional landfill recently started. The compactor truck will allow the city to take its two curbside sorter trucks off the street. One is so old it needs to be taken out of service, anyway, and Public Works Director Doug Fawcett said the city would look at what to do with the other one. The truck looks like a regular garbage truck. The city has used cleaned-out garbage trucks to pick up recycling in recent months when its old recycling truck has been in the shop. The garbage truck always sparked a few calls from residents wondering whether their recycling efforts were a waste of time. To try to avoid confusion, this new garbage truck has a giant logo on it with the word "recycling" written in big letters. "We want to make it very obvious to folks that when we pick up the recyclables and put them in this truck, it's not just going into the trash truck," Fawcett said. Mikel said the single-stream collection has allowed the regional landfill to increase the amount of material it recycles, and to escape some of the market declines that have made recycling hard for other localities in recent months.
Read more stories about Fredericksburg Date published: 11/1/2009
I live in Stafford County, where we not only have the privilege of paying higher taxes, but we have to pay private companies to haul our trash. My trash pickups are twice a week, but by recycling, once a week would be more than enough-unfortunately my trash collector doesn't have that option. If you want the city to pick up more than once a week, then I hope you're willing to pay for it. As for odors, wrap up and freeze chicken bones, etc until trash day-that's what I do.
Elloramom-Garbage is a problem; maybe you need a pig! Or at least, look at what you are throwing out and not cook for the Marine corp or football team each night. And we talk about McDonald's SUPER sizing things, sounds like the economy has not hit your house; invite over a neighbor for dinner !!! The first step is THINKING about it !! Gary - How big is your dog ???? Recycling CAN Work !!!
When 1st I came to TX and heard about RECYCLE, I though it would never work. I was putting out 3-4 bags, 2 times a week; NOW-Washing plastic/cans, is like dishes in a dishwasher, & paper. We put out bins 2-times a month, and some weeks, I can hardly find enough trash for the once a week trash pickup. I AM JUST AMAZED !!! It does take a little getting used to but sure can work if you try. WHAT the profits are depend on the efforts of the people & the cities. "You Saved the R-River, now Save on Trash" !
Get a dog.
Once a week trash pickup would mean thinks would get pretty
rank waiting for the truck. Its not the recyclables that are a
problem, its things like chicken bones and other garbage...
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