Posted on 08/07/2004 10:33:55 AM PDT by Josh in PA
The motive is federal dollars. The feds pay the municipalities to set up the system with a build it and they will come attitude. The economics never came but the towns are hooked on the cash and can't let it go now.
Costa said failing to recycle costs the city money. It's paid $11 a ton for glass, cans and plastics and $30 a ton for newspaper, Costa said. Statewide, the average cost to take municipal trash to a landfill is about $57 per ton, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection.
And for the money to boot!
"I run a very tight program. I'm an ex-Marine and I run this like it was Parris Island," Hejmanowski said.
Oh, it would be soooooooo fun to mess with this guy. I'd be calling their office 10, 15 times a day asking how my trash should be "categorized":
"Hello? Yeah, I got this ad in the mail and it's on cardstock and I don't know if it's recyclable...should I throw it away or put it in with the newsprint?"
"Yeah, is a Wendy's hamburger wrapper recyclable, and is it metal or paper?"
"Yo, me again--do you guys want used paper towels in with newspapers?"
Out of desperation one of our local towns responded to the reality that all the recyclables were going into the landfill by announcing a new project which gave cash grants and tax goodies to corporations who would build on sites where they would use crushed glass as fill base for the buildings, like crushed stone. The municipality filled in every industrial zoned site with crushed glass as fill and drove bulldozers over it 24/7 to compact it. Of the one site I know of that did build, they dug a huge pit and rebulldozed all the glass into a hole, brought in crushed stone to build, and took the grant/seed money and tax goodie incentive and set up shop. They then closed the location and moved to Minnesota who was giving them a better tax break and incentives, leaving about 50 workers unemployed. They kept the cash though.
The beatings will continue until morale improves!
If recycling paid, there would be private companies going door to door asking for your cans, bottles and newspapers.
The only items I recycle are copper and sterling. There's a recycler who actually pays me money for it.
Recycling costs money. For example, one town near me spent $750,000 to run their recycling program. The program generated $250,000 in revenue. Course, that would make perfect sense to your average Green. Most of the stuff that gets recycled these days, ends up in landfills, because that's the least expensive way to dispose of it.
"Trust me, it's not that bad once you get used to it."
Here they provided a blue can for recyclables - No problem using it at all...
" It saves money too."
I would bet that the only money it saves is a tiny portion of the money needed to buy a new dumpsite.
BTW, anyone know why plastic bags are NOT recyclable ?
I lived in Pgh for a year or so.
When I was there it was fine. Now it has reverted to the sad little place where little guys in caps and buicks cut in front of you on left turns and stop when they get on the freeway onramp.
This latest stunt with recycling is no suprise to me. The mayor is doing anything he can to tax and fine the city out of near bankruptcy. Only problem, they won't cut spending where it needs to be cut.
Imagine the first lawsuit because perchloride from plastic bottles was combined with other plastics and used for food packaging or plastic plates?
Isn't there some kind of unwritten law that forbids former marines from referring to themselves as EX-marines?
No doubt a large hole in the budget was left by Ter-RAY-za pulling out her philanthropic cash. A lot of people in Pittsburgh detest that woman.
That which is not prohibited is cumpulsory!
But there was absolutely nothing I could find to do downtown after dark except to watch tv in my hotel room.
Yeah, that is exactly my feeling about it. Recycling aluminum makes economic sense. Recycling everything else is just liberals making themselves believe that they're "saving the planet". Seems like the sooner we implement policies that have their basis in reality, the better off we'll be.
Fines can make up some of the difference. What's next, fines for not viewing propaganda movies such as Fahrenheit 911?
Once you get to know the town you will find a considerable nightlife, even downtown. For casual visitors, yes, it is quiet after dark.
I asked that very question to my city recycling program manager. He and the company that actually collects the stuff, gave me the, IMHO, lame answer of, "nobody wants to put groceries in a used bag". What dopes.
I suspect since the bags are not stuff, firm, can be processed mechanically items, that nobody wants to deal with them.
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