Auburn, Maine drops single-stream
Fri, 01/27/2012 - 09:08 | 
dylan
Auburn, Maine drops single-streamBy Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling Faced with declining value in its recycled commodities, Auburn, Maine is moving to phase out its single-stream curbside recycling collection program in favor of dual-stream collection. Under the revised program, residents will be asked to place paper and cardboard into one bin, and plastic, glass and metal into a second, reports the Lewiston Sun Journal. The newspaper quotes the chair of the city's Solid Waste Subcommittee as saying that commodities being produced with its single-stream program were becoming "practically worthless" because of contamination. Although the new program will cost more than the city currently pays, the new collection method has a greater chance to grow, according to the paper. |
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Maybe the local council could
Maybe the local council could setup a new contract with San Jose junk removal company. I'm sure that the price will benefit both sides and I think that recycling is very important. Switching to a dual-stream collecting process is the right thing to do. Congrats and keep up the good work!!
Auburn, Maine drops single-stream
It sounds like they have a single stream processing problem. There should not be a problem with the value and marketability of SS recyclables once they are sorted. They are looking at the wrong end of this problem. As a result of this sloppy thinking and problem solving, they will pay more. I guess if you want to feel like you are doing something regardless of cost, this solution fits the bill (pun intended) nicely.
End uses matter
Quality of materials does decline with SS. For example, glass from SS used as landfill cover is not considered recycling by all in the recycling community & likely not many of the public. Meanwhile bottle to bottle recycling provides significant energy savings, higher revenue and a closed loop approach.
Duel Stream recycling
There is not a problem with the paper glass and metal being mixed, the problem is the food waste and such being mixed in that contaminates the load of materials. If you are going to seperate the waste stream, why not have the food and wet contaminated items seperated out by the public. That leaves the good plastic, cardboard, paper, and metals dry and usable. Yes, this would require a seperate area on the truck picking up the load, but cost less than running two trucks for the same area, it also makes it simple for the seperation area to keep recyclables clean and so more valuable. GK
There are big problems with single stream
This is the best study I've seen so far. Single stream is cheaper for the waste haulers but is not good for "recycling". Don't trust anything a "waste hauler" tells you about recycling, they are not the "Recyclers".
http://www.container-recycling.org/assets/pdfs/reports/2009-SingleStream...