| Author | Message | ||
     dom Citizen Username: Dom Post Number: 30 Registered: 8-2005 |
In the Maplewood Leaflet this month there was a small article that said we ranked third from last in all of Essex County. I'm confused as to why that is. Does it have to do with the fact that our town doesnt recycle plastic anymore? How can they estimate how many people are recycling regularly? We separate everything in bins in our basement but only bring it up once a month or so when the piles get big and the bins get full. Does it affect our ratings if you "bulk recycle" as opposed to putting a little out every other week? | ||
| eb1154 Citizen Username: Eb1154 Post Number: 520 Registered: 5-2001 |
The numbers are based on the total amount of solid waste generated in Maplewood. They then break in down by dividing the amount of solid waste that was recycled. Example: Total tons dumped in landfills or at the incinerator in 2005: 9,000 Total tons of recycled material in 2005: 1,000 Maplewood’s recycling rate for 2005: 10% The problem is that there are a lot of people in town who are not recycling. The numbers have been going down for several years, this trend is not only happening in Maplewood it has been happening throughout NJ. This is why the NJDEP has come out with a new state solid waste plan, and has some legislation waiting to be passed regarding increasing the recycling rate in NJ. The counties will also be adopting new plans which will change the municipal plans. Two major topics will be- education and enforcement. Maplewood is currently discussing new educational ideas and looking at the possibility of having an inspector doing some enforcement. The article was published in the Maplewood Leaflet to bring some attention to this problem. Please pass the word about recycling. If you have any questions or even some suggestions on how to increase our recycling here in town please give me a call @973-762-1175. Thank you, Eric Burbank | ||
| KRNL Citizen Username: Krnl Post Number: 103 Registered: 9-2005 |
I don't know about the pickups, but the town does recycle plastic at the dump. | ||
| cody Citizen Username: Cody Post Number: 1089 Registered: 5-2001 |
Does the calculation take into account the material that people drop off at the recycling center themselves or just what the trucks pick up? I bring my plastic, cardboard and most of my papers to the center myself. Hope they are being counted as well. | ||
| Joan Supporter Username: Joancrystal Post Number: 7857 Registered: 5-2001 |
If people generate less recycleable waste because they are increasing their use of reuseable containers, buying products with less packaging, relying on computer (as opposed to paper) forms of communication and media access, etc. wouldn't this tend to result in a comparatively low ranking given eb's criteria even though the final impact on the preservation of the environment in such a case is actually greater than in those communities producing more recycleable waste? | ||
| John Caffrey Citizen Username: Jerseyjack Post Number: 403 Registered: 11-2005 |
To improve recycling, hire a recycling coordinator. There are at least two people living in Maplewood who completed the Rutgers University 200 hour recycling course. If the town values it, lets pay for it. | ||
| lizzyr Citizen Username: Lizzyr Post Number: 278 Registered: 5-2001 |
taking Joan's comments a step further - do they look at solid waste generated per person? if we do a good job of reusing junk mail as scrap paper and not buying disposable containers, based on the calcuation currently big used, we are being punished. Sounds like we all need to buy a six-pack so we can recycle the cans...(actually bottles of wine they are heavier) Better yet, bring home extra newspapers from Penn Station! | ||
| bottomline Citizen Username: Bottomline Post Number: 456 Registered: 8-2003 |
I'm with Joan and Lizzy: this seems to be a questionable metric. Why place emphasis on the ratio of recycled material to other solid waste instead of worrying about these rates on a per capita basis? As a separate issue, incentives for recycling could be improved in Maplewood, albeit at a cost. For example, some towns do not require source separation (I think Millburn is one). That means the residents don't need to separate glass from plastic from tin cans. They can just pitch it one big bin and it will all be carted it away. Also, as mentioned above, we used to have recycling of plastic at the curb; now we must take to DPW if we want it recycled. I recall that service was eliminated for cost reasons, but I have little doubt it caused a reduction in the amount of plastic recycled. | ||
| hch Citizen Username: Hch Post Number: 321 Registered: 8-2002 |
The bottom line is that recycling in Maplewood is a total pain in the rear. Pick ups only 2x times a month, everything must be separated resulting in about 5 or 6 containers, and they don't take plastic. So then you have to make extra trips just to get rid of plastic. Make the system better and more people will recycle. I tell people from other towns how much we have to separate items and they can't believe it. | ||
| lizzyr Citizen Username: Lizzyr Post Number: 280 Registered: 5-2001 |
I agree HCH - I actually count 8 different containers: 3 glass, alum cans, metal cans, newspaper, mixed paper and cardboard. We get more money from the recycling company by having residents sort their stuff. We need to weigh this PITA (pain in the arse) factor for residents vs. cost savings vs. what we may be giving up in grant money due to low compliance. | ||
| Spare_o Supporter Username: Spare_o Post Number: 442 Registered: 9-2003 |
We recycle regularly and make trips to the recycling center for plastics. I notice as I walk through my neighborhood that people seem to put out a little of everything to recycle except mixed paper. That's what we tend to recycle the most in our house - we regularly have 2 bins each recycle period, in addition to the newspapers. My guess is that people aren't recycling everything they could and not much mixed paper and, believe me, it weighs alot. Maybe if people recycled more paper that could increase the amount Maplewood recycles since it is heavy. Just my $0.02. | ||
| John Citizen Username: Jdm Post Number: 88 Registered: 3-2006 |
lizzyr and others, There is no need to separate glass, metal or paper. Despite what the township info says, the recycling guys just throw all material of the same type into one bin anyway. Watch them one day. All glass goes in the truck together; all paper; all metal. Don't bother sorting beyond those three big categories. I can't understand why the town can't change its instructions. Eric? Now, if someone can explain to me why they won't take aluminum items like pie tins, I'd be most grateful. Given the amount of beer and soda residue that must be in some cans, it can't be because they're too dirty. | ||
| I'm Only Sleeping Citizen Username: Imonlysleeping Post Number: 205 Registered: 8-2005 |
So I don't need to separate newspapers from magazines? Also, how strict are they about tying stuff up with twine, breaking down cardboard boxes, etc.? I feel like I spend an absurd amount of time complying with their intricate instructions, but if it's wasted effort it would be nice to have my tuesday nights back. | ||
| juju's petals Citizen Username: Jujus_petals Post Number: 308 Registered: 5-2003  |
Wouldn't a carrot work better than a stick on this? Rather than spend money on inspectors and enforcement, towns in Maine charge for trash pickup based on the number of containers. The more you recycle, the less you pay in trash pickup. Simple. Not so simple considering that we pay a third-party for trash pickup in Maplewood, but why couldn't that suggestion be on the table? Folks will be motivated to recycle more when they can see what's in it for them. Please don't post the crying Native American pix now. | ||
| Oldstone Citizen Username: Rogers4317 Post Number: 830 Registered: 6-2004 |
good question about the cardboard tying, i'm only sleeping. i spend so much time flattening and tying and then i see other neighbors just putting unflattened/untied boxes out and WM takes it all. | ||
| eb1154 Citizen Username: Eb1154 Post Number: 521 Registered: 5-2001 |
I will try to address some of the comments. We are currently looking at the “pay as you throw” program. There are a few hurdles that need to be overcome, and there are also a few downsides to the program. Yes, the cans and bottles are all thrown in to the same truck but different compartments. Mixed paper and cardboard are thrown in together because the current market place will accept it this way. The previous and possibly the future market place won’t, therefore we can’t change the method. Our numbers aren’t much worse than towns that commingle. The cost was actually cheaper for us to pick up source separated. Yes, under the current system we are penalized for reducing the amount of trash we produce, but that is not what our problem is. The numbers have shown that we are still increasing in the trash tonnage. Most towns don’t even offer two pick ups a month, and they only have their recycling yard open two days a week. Eric | ||
| John Citizen Username: Jdm Post Number: 89 Registered: 3-2006 |
"Yes, the cans and bottles are all thrown in to the same truck but different compartments" Sorry if I implied otherwise, but I meant to say that all glass is thrown into one compartment and all metal into another. They don't care about sorting within the glass or within the metal, which is why the township literature should be changed to say that. My own experience with paper is similar. We put ours into brown paper bags (which makes eminent sense to me) and they pick it up every time. Cardboard I try to fold up, but they seem to take pizza boxes without complaining. I don't know about the market, but everyplace I know that recycles paper (like my employer) doesn't sort by type of paper. | ||
| eb1154 Citizen Username: Eb1154 Post Number: 523 Registered: 5-2001 |
Each item has its own compartment. There are 5 compartments on that truck. We sort the paper because in makes more financial sense. | ||
| hch Citizen Username: Hch Post Number: 324 Registered: 8-2002 |
Millburn Recycling Schedule for July 2006: July 1 = paper July 3 = comingle July 4 = holiday, no pick-up July 5-8 = comingle July 10-15 = paper July 17-22 = co-mingle July 24-29 = paper July 31 = comingle South Orange Recycling: Curbside once per month. Recycling depot open Monday through Saturday. Springfield Recycling: Curbside recycling every two weeks. Bulk pick-up 4x per year. Grass pick-up from April through October once a week. Irvington Recycling: Schedule is hard to read, but it looks like pick-up is once a week, alternating between newspaper and glass/aluminum/tin/plastic. Recycling center open Mon - Fri. Union Recycling: Bulk pick-up once a week. "White bulk pick-up" (washer, dryer, etc) once per month. Recycling once per week, alternating between paper products and glass/metal/plastic. Summit Recycling: Curbside every other week. From my informal research, I found only one neighboring town that has less curbside pick-up than Maplewood (South Orange). The standard seems to be every other week, rather than 2x per month. | ||
| Bill232 Citizen Username: Bill232 Post Number: 190 Registered: 3-2003 |
Dont forget that the Maplewood Fire Dept collects aluminum beverage cans all year for the burn unit at St Barnabas hospital. They can be dropped of at the rear of either fire house. Thank you. | ||
| Joan Supporter Username: Joancrystal Post Number: 7876 Registered: 5-2001 |
Bill: The entire can or just the tab? | ||
| John Caffrey Citizen Username: Jerseyjack Post Number: 408 Registered: 11-2005 |
Joan, I think its just the tab. You are supposed to save those and I think also Lucky Strike cigarette packages and I think they are also collecting Jello Lime packages and you can help a nine year old girl get an iron lung while she waits for her kidney transplant. I believe she lives in Missouri or some other mid-western state like British Columbia. When I find out where you send the tabs and the used packages, I will post it.  | ||
| Joan Supporter Username: Joancrystal Post Number: 7878 Registered: 5-2001 |
John: In my experience, it is usually just the tab. Thus my question to Bill who made the original post. | ||
| John Caffrey Citizen Username: Jerseyjack Post Number: 412 Registered: 11-2005 |
Sorry - I just couldn't resist the opportunity. Similar tales about the tabs and boxes have have been urban legend for a long time. If in doubt, call the fire dept. and ask them. I doubt the tabs have any value. The value is in the metal and the entire container has more metal than just the tab. | ||
| Camnol Citizen Username: Camnol Post Number: 432 Registered: 3-2005 |
Fire Department collects cans, not tabs. The only thing I miss about the town I moved from (Union County) is recycling. I was really surprised to see it was so different here. About 10 years ago or so, they switched to allowing comingling of plastic, cans and all colors of glass. Mixed paper and newspapers were separate, but you could put them in brown bags. When we were done with the newspaper, we just put it in a can that had a brown bag as a liner. When it was full, it was carried out to recycling. Made it so much less of a chore. | ||
| Camnol Citizen Username: Camnol Post Number: 433 Registered: 3-2005 |
I have to correct myself. Plastics were separate, glass and cans were comingled. | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 12274 Registered: 5-2001 |
When we lived in Maplewood, and it was for 27 years, recycling was always a pain in the neck. Pickups were to infrequent and too much sorting was required. We would often have four or five contaners out at the curb, plus stacks of newspapers tied up with string. For awhile we had to even sort plastic by the recycling code on the container, which wasn't a lot of fun to do in a cold dark garage in January. We moved to West Orange a couple of months ago and the system is the same as Camnol describes in his/her former Union County town. It is much simpler and I suspect simplicity leads to more compliance. I know there are a lot of people in Maplewood who consider themselves "enviornmentalists" and believe in recycling with a fervor usually reserved for religion, which makes the low compliance rate so surprising. | ||
| combustion Citizen Username: Spontaneous Post Number: 323 Registered: 4-2006  |
I recycle, but I don't put anything out on the curb, I can never remember what days the pick-up's are on. And cardboard pick-up? What is that? First day of the full moon if the month ends in the letter R? Something like that. I just take everything (plastic too) to the recycling yard myself. Yeah, more work, but somehow it seems easier. | ||
| Joan Supporter Username: Joancrystal Post Number: 7901 Registered: 5-2001 |
Maplewoodians might recycle more often if the town lead by example. Perhaps if we could get recycling bins for aluminum cans, paper, etc. at town events, it would set a good example. | ||
| ess Citizen Username: Ess Post Number: 2867 Registered: 11-2001  |
Pardon my ignorance on this matter, but can someone please tell me where the recycling center is??? Thanks. | ||
| combustion Citizen Username: Spontaneous Post Number: 327 Registered: 4-2006 |
Boyden Ave, right at the bend, next to Newark Way. I think they're open weekdays until 3, Saturdays until noon, but you'd better call to double check on that. | ||
| BGS Supporter Username: Bgs Post Number: 1201 Registered: 10-2003 |
Bobk- I surely hear you...WE have to divide the glass by color but I have seen the recyclers throw it all in the same bin on the trucks. We put our stuff out about once a month with the girls on their own. We have much less stuff to go out. | ||
| mimosa Citizen Username: Mimosa Post Number: 226 Registered: 5-2001 |
Does the town pick up shredded mixed paper? I recently got a paper shredder and put the shreddings out for recycling. The other bin of non-shredded mixed paper was collected and the shredded paper was left behind. | ||
| sac Supporter Username: Sac Post Number: 3634 Registered: 5-2001 |
I don't see why they shouldn't take shredded paper - and I did put some out in a bin once and they took it. But, it was such a mess, with lots of little shreddings left behind, that I never did it again. Someone ought to come up with a paper bag that can line the shredder container and be recycled right along with the shreddings ... can paper grocery bags be recycled in this way or is there any other solution to this? EB? | ||
| Bill232 Citizen Username: Bill232 Post Number: 192 Registered: 3-2003 |
Joan-The Fire Dept collects the entire can. When the cage fills up the cans are brought to a recycling center and weighed. A check from the total weight of the cans goes directly to the Burn Education Center at St Barnabas. This program is in cooperation with other Fire Depts throughtout the state. Please pass the word. There is alot of cans that don't get collected for this program. | ||
| teach66 Citizen Username: Teach66 Post Number: 60 Registered: 5-2001 |
Bob and hch have hit the nail on the head. It's all about simplicity. Why do you think South Orange has such a good recycling rate? Becase it's easy. One giant bin with three separate compartments, that you can purchase through the town, wheeled to the curb once/twice a month. I believe they also have reasonable days to visit the dump and bring just about anything you want. In Maplewood it's like some sort of a sudako. First of all you have to figure out if it's the first or the third or the second or the fourth Friday. And if you have one of those months where the first of the month is a Friday, you're screwed for the rest of the month. Then newspapers must be tied with twine and can be no higher than some specified height. The plastic, cans and glass must be rinsed and separated by color and put in bins no larger than a specified weight size. Given any of these requirements, and a few kids in the house, there is always going to be an accumulation of garbage in the home along with a multitude of small recycling containers and garbage outside. This leading most anyone who is trying to gain some sort of organization and sanity to the ever-popular black bags. As far as our dump, I can't even tell what the answer to that puzzle would be there. The last time I loaded up my car I think I came home with more than I went there with. Only kidding, however, I went on the wrong day, then the wrong time and then brought the wrong stuff. Most of it couldn't be taken. My friends in South Orange tell me you can even bring appliances to their dump on their dump days. | ||
| TomR Citizen Username: Tomr Post Number: 1220 Registered: 6-2001 |
Teach, How does the 1st falling on a friday screw things up? TomR | ||
| John Citizen Username: Jdm Post Number: 92 Registered: 3-2006 |
I won't say that I like our system compared with other places I've lived, but several of us keep pointing out that this: Then newspapers must be tied with twine and can be no higher than some specified height. The plastic, cans and glass must be rinsed and separated by color. isn't true (despite what the township literature says). | ||
| teach66 Citizen Username: Teach66 Post Number: 61 Registered: 5-2001 |
Because, if the 1st of the month falls on the Friday, then you're, we'll I'm, inclined to think the following Friday is the first Friday, messing up the entire month. Or at least leaving me with three weeks of garbage accumulation inside and outside of my home, separated into many, smaller containers, with newspapers getting wet, brown and bug ridden. And what's the deal on cardboard/boxes? And then try and factor in grass and yard clippings? So, if these instructions aren't true, what's the deal? Does anyone really know what exactly the rules are? And, if trying to figure out the rules is so difficult doesn't this show exactly why we're doing such a bad job at it? Simplicity IS the answer. One giant bin, purchased through the town, with three compartments, wheeled to the curb on the 15th and the 30th of the month. How wonderful would that be? | ||
| teach66 Citizen Username: Teach66 Post Number: 62 Registered: 5-2001 |
Oh, I see there's a person Eric here who has something to do with all this. Eric, can you tell us exactly what the procedure is and on what days. At one time I put out my papers in brown bags and they wouldn't pick it up. I called the town and they gave me the twine and so many inches ordeal. Now someone is saying that the brown bags are okay and the twine isn't true. If by some weird chance recycling were my basis for choosing a location to live, I guess I'd pick Union, or South Orange for that matter. I love that bin that they wheel out. But I also LIVE for that once a year bulk pick up. Eric, do you also know what the rules are at our dump? I would love to know how to get rid of my larger garbage except for once a year. Come on, give us the whole scoop. |
