Dive Brief:
- Pittsburgh City Councilman Dan Gilman has established four objectives for expanding the city's recycling in 2018, as reported by WESA. These objectives are: Starting weekly pickup, providing blue bins for households, starting an e-waste and hazardous waste program and adding more recycling containers in public spaces.
- Gilman said the rollout for these programs could take up to four years, in part because of the need for funding from corporate partners and nonprofits. Recycling Supervisor Kyle Winkler told WESA that the cost of a blue bin program, RFID chips, sensors and delivery could run up to $3 million.
- One proposed idea is to start distributing blue bins as an opt-in feature, as reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. As more finances become available, more residents could get blue bins on a first-come basis.
Dive Insight:
Currently, most Pittsburgh residents have access to bi-weekly recycling collection, but put their recyclables in non-standard containers — though there have been some blue bin pilot programs in the city. Some recyclables are bagged, too. Distributing standardized collection bins could help improve efficiency in collections and in MRF operations, since there would likely be fewer thin plastic bags gumming up machines.
Distributing blue bins would likely also help the city reach its "zero waste" goal of sending zero waste to landfills by 2030. Pittsburgh's strategic plan for reaching zero waste includes creating a public-private partnership (P3) to weigh the benefits versus the cost of recycling more material.
Pittsburgh has options in considering partners as it pursues "zero waste." The Recycling Partnership, for example, has helped over 250 communities develop or further their recycling programs. Other cities have used programs including Recyclebank to engage residents and raise recycling rates. Whatever path city officials choose, Pittsburgh will likely serve as a model for other communities looking to expand recycling services, given its size and reputation as a smart and sustainable city.
