8/4/2023 0 Comments Better trash system![]() "Even if their pocketbook was the initial incentive, they ultimately realized what they're doing for the economy. "People who didn't care before have taken on a new attitude," Mercer adds. But everyone now realizes the fairness of PAYT. Residents who put out a lot of trash initially balked at the change, Mercer says. Loveland also accepts used automobile oil for free and takes it to refining recyclers. The city now charges a flat monthly fee to fund its waste diversion program for curbside recycling, drop-off recycling, yard waste recycling, household hazardous waste recycling and the annual spring cleanup program. Now everyone can do their own math and learn that if they continue to be wasteful, it's going to cost them." And, he adds, "the amount of recyclable materials is much higher than before."Īccording to city figures, in 1999, 59 percent of Loveland's residential waste stream was recycled instead of landfilled. "Some people set out lots of trash every week, while some have very little - so it wasn't fair. "If you charge a flat monthly fee, it fails to inspire people to make a strong effort to recycle," Mercer says. "We wanted to introduce curbside recycling, and we knew if we charged people on the amount of waste, it would encourage them to recycle," he says.Īfter examining the options, city officials opted to charge residents for trash collection by the bag - the more bags, the higher the charges - because they felt it was the most equitable system. Mercer says he and the city's leaders liked the idea that PAYT could save money, but they didn't understand how the rate system worked. Prior to that, households, on average, were setting out slightly more than two an a half traditional sized garbage cans weekly, and the city was charging a flat monthly fee to fund its waste collection program. It makes good common sense, and works under that same analogy as water and electric bills."Ī community of 50,000 people, Loveland began its citywide PAYT program in 1993. ![]() " added some equity to rates because now people know they're charged for only what they throw. PAYT Brings Equality "With PAYT, the incentive to compost, recycle and use less trash makes people think about how they'll manage their waste," says Mick Mercer, manager of streets and solid waste services for the city of Loveland, Colo. Yet despite the hindrances to implementing a PAYT program, the communities that have stuck with it say overall, it pays off. PAYT actually began in the 1920s when a few communities in California decided there was a better way to handle residential waste. ![]() communities with PAYT programs on record, the fact that it has taken 60-plus years for to get the ball rolling may lead some to believe that a fee-based system is not that simple. While Canterbury says there currently are 4,000 U.S. Research findings from a 1996 through 1998 study indicate the country now enjoys a 14 percent to 27 percent reduction in waste, and a 32 percent to 59 percent increase in recycling rates." The more you recycle, the more you help the environment. ![]() "The more waste you throw, the more you pay. "It's a simple and basic concept," says Janice Canterbury, environmental scientist with the EPA's Office of Solid Waste in Arlington, Va. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. Additionally, communities that adopt fee-based waste collection systems are banking on PAYT's claims to generate revenue to cover rising management costs. Word-of-mouth is spreading far and wide, with communities hoping PAYT lives up to its promise to reduce waste and increase recycling. Although pay-as-you-throw (PAYT) has a surprisingly long history, today its momentum is increasing. ![]()
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