July 26, 2008
Unfortunately, single-stream collection can cause serious contamination of recyclable materials because recyclables are all crushed in compacting trucks. They are dumped on the tipping floor and run over by front loaders countless times before separation. Broken glass embedded in paper bales causes equipment failure, downtime and lost productivity. High contamination levels render the whole load useless, wasting the recyclable material and the processor's time and money.
Connecticut's bottle bill keeps some glass out of curbside collections, but noncarbonated beverages are not covered under that law. The deposit program offers optimum recycling because it keeps materials separated, producing a high-quality feedstock that processors are eager to purchase. The system is privately funded using no taxpayer dollars whatsoever. Redemption rates for deposit containers are 66 percent to 70 percent — more than double the rates of curbside collection.
Before Connecticut adopts single-stream collection, it should update its bottle bill to include the containers that will otherwise be wasted because of the cross-contamination that single-stream collection inevitably creates.
Letter to the Editor
Update Bottle Bill
Single-stream recycling would be more aptly called "single-stream collection" [editorial, July 17, "Retooling For Recycling"]. For recycling to work, three equally important components of the system must function well: collection, materials processing and end use of the processed material by manufacturers.Unfortunately, single-stream collection can cause serious contamination of recyclable materials because recyclables are all crushed in compacting trucks. They are dumped on the tipping floor and run over by front loaders countless times before separation. Broken glass embedded in paper bales causes equipment failure, downtime and lost productivity. High contamination levels render the whole load useless, wasting the recyclable material and the processor's time and money.
Connecticut's bottle bill keeps some glass out of curbside collections, but noncarbonated beverages are not covered under that law. The deposit program offers optimum recycling because it keeps materials separated, producing a high-quality feedstock that processors are eager to purchase. The system is privately funded using no taxpayer dollars whatsoever. Redemption rates for deposit containers are 66 percent to 70 percent — more than double the rates of curbside collection.
Before Connecticut adopts single-stream collection, it should update its bottle bill to include the containers that will otherwise be wasted because of the cross-contamination that single-stream collection inevitably creates.
Betty McLaughlin
Executive Director Container Recycling Institute Glastonbury
http://www.courant.com/news/opinion/editorials/hc-digedlets0726.art2jul26,0,2674625.story
