Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Recycling push is good news


The ERC is greatly encouraged by the city of Sun Valley implementing a "Pay As You Throw" system and encouraging responsible waste management. In light of this development, the ERC would like to clarify some key program aspects mentioned in last week's article and to encourage further progress.

First, to clarify, there are no "penalties" in a PAYT program. The penalties mentioned in the article referred to littering or not paying bills as opposed to refusing to recycle. With Pay As You Throw, the more trash one produces, the more one pays; the less trash produced, the less one pays. By charging for trash and offering recycling at no charge, people are encouraged to move recyclables from a garbage bin to a recycling bin, to downsize the garbage bin and to save money, sometimes more than $100 a year.

Referring to Sun Valley's new waste management program as "mandatory recycling" is misleading: The program does not state that patrons must recycle, only that patrons must pay for recycling services. By asking patrons to pull recyclables out of their garbage, we can reduce expenses, curb greenhouse gas emissions and so much more. The ERC hopes, however, that everyone will recycle, and that perhaps one day our community will be as bold as to say that no perfectly recyclable items should ever be thrown in the trash.

Second, to expand: It was also mentioned in the article that our community does not allow recyclables to be mixed together in one bin. While commingling recycling does make recycling much more convenient, it is currently beyond the technology of Blaine County's recycling center and our valley's financial reach.

The city of Sun Valley is taking great steps to encourage responsible waste disposal and is working with the ERC, Ketchum, Hailey, Bellevue, Blaine County and others to collaboratively draft a valley-wide Solid Waste Management Plan. The ERC is very encouraged by public and private entities that are involved in making a difference today, for tomorrow.

Colleen Teevin

ERC program director

Ketchum




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