The end of seperate cardboard bins
When I asked the guru, (when this all started) about the exclusive use of a packer trash truck, (like the old days), on each route 6 days a week. We hopefully don't purchase that many products weekly to make enough cardboard here in the Ham. The money spent to pick up that much cardboard to make it cost neutral at most stops was an unreal expectation. I should applaud their effort to try something to stop the bleeding but this was not well thought out. I don't have all the answers, but I do know, the only way you will fix this mess is through an all out massive education of the residents, plain and simple. Relying on residents to stuff their Prius with large cardboard pieces to the recycle center is wishful thinking. Some will, as they do now already. We must start walk-around inspections, armed with fliers and warnings. Sounds bad I know, but if we can't even control our recycling, stop recycling all together and just pay tipping charges to one or two waste disposal companies and let them sort all of the recyclables out.
On a side note: Lets see if the topic of recycling even comes up in the Green candidate forum later this week. Or even Green Up Day.
The City of Framingham and the Public Works Department thanks you for your participation
in the Curbside Cardboard Collection Pilot Program. I regret to inform you that the Pilot
Program will be coming to an end on the week of October 7th.
The Department of Public Works undertook this pilot program in April 2019 after a crisis in
the recycled commodity market caused the City's recycling disposal costs to double. To
alleviate some of the burden on Framingham taxpayers, the Department explored initiatives
that would divert materials from the more costly single-stream recycling into segregated
commodities. Shortly before the program began, the City was receiving varying rates at or
above $260 per ton for cardboard. Today, there is no cost rebate. The fuel, labor cost, and
wear and tear on our vehicles, is more costly than the program can offset. The Division's
operating budget is no longer able to sustain the expenses required for the provision of this
service.
We appreciate your diligence in "Recycling Right." Whether motivated by the opportunity to
save the City money, environmental responsibility, or just the need for additional capacity,
your participation has made it possible to explore what could be viable options for the City.
Please place your extra cardboard cart at the curb on your regular collection day. The
cart, as well as any cardboard you have placed inside, will be picked up by Department
personnel.
Residents who have large quantities of cardboard are encouraged to utilize the City's
Recycling Drop-Off Center (RDC) at 255 Mount Wayte Avenue. The RDC is available to
permitted residents of Framingham. Permits can be purchased for a yearly fee of $20.
Thank you again for your participation in this program. If you have any questions or
concerns, please contact the Sanitation Division at 508-532-6001.
Sincerely,
Daniel S. Nau
Director of Highway and Sanitation
OPERATIONS CENTER ~ 100 WESTERN AVENUE ~ FRAMINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS 01702 ~ TEL 508-532-6030 ~ FAX 508-620-4801
posted by Jim Pillsbury @ 8:26 PM
18 Comments
18 Comments:
I never saw any of these cardboard containers out in Framingham, except mine. I faithfully put mine out every single week, even if it was only 1/4 filled, because I knew the value of this trial would be found in how many stops the truck made to pick these barrels up. I know people tend to be too lazy to put them out unless they are full, and because of their laziness this program did not succeed. I am always telling my neighbors to put the barrels out every single week. The trucks go around every single week to pick them up. By putting your barrels out every week these guys do their job and our trash is probably pretty balanced every week as is recycling. But if people are too lazy to put these out unless they are filled then we have high weeks and low weeks and that makes it tougher to plan ahead. When I am on the road in Framingham I am always surprised at the number of "do gooders" who complain about the issue with recycling but don't bother to put their barrel out every week. Just put out your barrels people. Stop being lazy.
that begs the question, should they pick-up trash and recycling every other week?
If it saves us money then yes, we should look at every other week, or maybe one week is trash, the next is recycle. I would think it would save money. Great idea Jim.
So how much did it cost us to do this "test" run? Waste of taxpayer dollars.
the test must have cost more than it was worth in recycled cardboard. I'm not sure they would give me that info.
You only have to drive by house after house with a giant Amazon cardboard box which might contain just a toothbrush in front of it. Give the DPW a break, they experimented with a recycling idea and found it wouldn't work and stopped it. I'm sure we'll get to hear Stefanini complain about it at the debates or Cannon complain about it at the Council meetings.
Maybe those complaints are justified?
Ha. Good one.
So what do we do with cardboard now? Do we put it in the regular recycle bin?
Put the cardboard in your recycle bin along with CLEANED plastics, glass and metal cans. NO PIZZA boxes of any kind, no milk or soup cartons and above all, NO PLASTIC BAGS. Everything must be washed out before tossing.
And how much water am I wasting cleaning out a jar of Ragu vs what we're saving by recycling the glass?
Just another example of how unless people are willing to do what they should do no program is going to work. Jim complains that the town does not do enough to explain to residents what should go in recycle. I would say people just don't care enough to do what is right. Why would anyone sign up for this cardboard trial program and then never put their barrel out? What idiot expected to be able to fill it up every week? Unless you are going broke shopping on Amazon no one would fill that barrel every week. But we paid for the truck that picks up cardboard bins to go out every week and I am willing to bet some weeks they did not even pick up 20 barrels. How can that be a legitimate test? I am sure diehards like Jim put their cardboard barrel out every single week even if it only had 1 piece of cardboard because he wanted the program to work. But the rest of these nincompoops just were too lazy to drag the barrel to the curb. You reap what you sow. Residents who signed up for this did not do their part, so now the city won't be doing this anymore. This could have been a good program but once again residents of the Ham did not do their part.
I never even heard of this program but do like the sounds of it. Is it too late to try and get this saved?
Good point on the water wasted... but that left-over Ragu is what is contaminating the cardboard when not cleaned out of the glass. From what I understand, glass has very little value. It's all about the cardboard.
it's a done deal as far as I can see.
Overall which is the more important thing to be saving, water or recylced glass? My gut would say water is worth more than old glass but I could be wrong. Jim?
I have watched someone spend 5 minutes using burning hot water to clean out the crud from a glass jar that has been sitting in the frig forever. Water wasted. Fuel wasted to make the hot water. Emissions from the burning of the fuel. And then they finally just toss it in the recycling bin saying good enough. But now Jim is saying that left over crud might contaminate the good recycling stuff? The recycling people need to get back at educating the public when is it good to recycle and when is it bad.
water is our most precious commodity for life on ear. Wasting it, to clean recyclables may not be the best use of drinking water, but if we don't waste a little water cleaning our recyclables, we will just pay more in tipping fees and environmental pollution.
I wish there was a better solution, but until they stop collecting recyclables altogether, what choice do we have?
It's all about educating the residents as soon as possible.
Well said Mr. Pillsbury
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