A return from all for 1
Staff photo by Don Himsel Joanne Jones tosses material onto the pile at the recycling center in Merrimack Tuesday, January 26 2010. The town has switched from a separated to a single-stream recycling process.
Staff photo by Don Himsel Paul Ford operates the recycling center in Merrimack. He said some people appreciate being able to drop off comingled recyclables, others he feels are conditioned after years of separating the different materials and feel uncomfortable dumping everything together.
Staff photo by Don Himsel Material used to be dropped off and sorted into compartments by Merrimack residents at the town's recycling center. It was processed on-site and ended up like this bale of aluminum cans awaiting pickup. Now residents dump their recycling in one large pile and it's trucked off-site.
Staff photo by Don Himsel Compacted tin cans have been baled for pick up at Merrimack's recycling center. The town now has single-stream recycling and no longer processes separate materials.
Staff photo by Don Himsel Joanne Jones tosses material onto the pile at the recycling center in Merrimack Tuesday, January 26 2010. The town has switched from a separated to a single-stream recycling process.
MERRIMACK – A new recycling program in Merrimack seems to be picking up.
It’s been two months since the town implemented single stream recycling, but in that time, Merrimack has picked up 40 percent more recyclables at the transfer station, said Public Works Director Rick Seymour.
That uptick has translated into modest financial savings that he predicts will grow during this year.
“It’s definitely trending upwards,” Seymour said of recycling amounts. “Merrimack has always had a good group of recyclers who are willing and eager to recycle. I think those people are happy with the program. And there are those who didn’t recycle before who are now.”
For years, transfer station users separated paper, plastic and other recyclables, which the town sorted, baled and shipped separately from regular trash. Last year, Merrimack made $35,000 in selling some of its recyclables.
Last spring, the Town Council approved implementing single stream recycling, which expanded the list of allowed items and let users toss everything in one bin – no more sorting.
The program called for spending $75,000 on a new trailer and cutting an employee with a salary and benefits of $56,000. The town then promoted the program through public education pamphlets and videos.
So far, Seymour said, the feedback has been positive.
“I’m hearing good things from residents, like it’s easy to use, you don’t have to sort any more, you can get in and out of there easily and it’s saving them some tax money,” Seymour said.
And while it’s convenient for users, single stream was also designed to be a money-saver.
Merrimack transfer station users generate about 10,000 tons of materials a year, according to figures provided to the Town Council last year. By month, users dumped an average of 750 tons to 800 tons of trash into the regular stream.
With the town paying $62 a ton in tipping fees this year, it shakes out to some $50,000 a month in disposal costs. That fee goes up 3 percent a year, Seymour said.
Taking recyclables out of the trash stream saves on those fees, Seymour said, shifting costs to a less expensive, $10-per-recycled-ton operation in Billerica, Mass.
Last year, users recycled an average of 75 tons into the separate bins, Seymour said.
In December, the first full month of single stream, users tossed an additional 30 tons of materials into recycling, Seymour said – saving about $1,500.
The figures are tracking for the same result this month, which means Merrimack will have recycled 200 tons of materials for the two months of single stream. At this rate, Seymour hopes to double monthly recycling rates to 150 tons, which could net additional savings for the year around $20,000.
Merrimack also has pledged to join the Concord Regional Solid Waste Resource Recovery Cooperative – a nonprofit corporation of 27 communities that governs its own trash disposal. Under the partnership, Merrimack would again be paid for its recyclables: in the ballpark of $10 to $20 a ton, Seymour said.
The cooperative is working on building a new single stream facility; construction is slated to begin in the spring.
Karen Lovett can be reached at 594-6402 or klovett@nashuatelegraph.com.
