Feature
by Marc Westlund
The City and County of San Francisco’s Department of the Environment (SF Environment) has expanded the curbside recycling program for city residents to include all plastic bottles. Before the expansion, only bottles with recycling code numbers 1 and 2 could be recycled by city residents and businesses. “This will streamline our recycling program, meaning less effort for residents and more waste diverted from landfills for the city,” said SF Environment director Jared Blumenfeld. “No more turning bottles upside down and spilling those last few drops just to check the number on the bottom. If it’s a bottle, it’s recyclable!”
This new effort aimed at expanding the type of materials eligible for recycling is part of San Francisco’s ongoing effort to meet state-imposed requirements for the city to reduce its landfill use by 50 percent. Currently at 46 percent diversion of material from landfills, San Francisco is always looking for additional ways to meet the state mandate. The new program is expected to significantly increase the volume of waste San Franciscans send to recycling centers rather than landfills.
Studies of the “All Plastic Bottles” program in other cities have shown that allowing all bottles to be recycled increases collection rates for two reasons. First, the more bottles that are accepted for recycling, the more bottles are recycled. A second and less obvious advantage is that when all bottles can be recycled, residents who might previously have thrown away all their bottles begin to recycle, resulting in a higher collection rate of already recyclable bottles.
Under the new “All Plastic Bottles” program, San Francisco residents can now place all plastic bottles in the same blue bins or Fantastic Three carts they are already using. The new program will not increase the waste collection rates residents are already paying. Residents should note that while all plastic bottles are now recyclable, not all plastic containers are considered bottles. Plastic tubs, such as margarine or yogurt containers, are not currently recyclable.
“All plastic bottles recycling opens up many opportunities
for recycling all over the house,” said Blumenfeld. “Shampoo,
laundry detergent, vitamins—all these bottles can now be recycled.
We hope San Franciscans will take full advantage of this new program.”
SF Environment’s recycling efforts promotes and supports efforts
to reduce, reuse and recycle discarded materials in San Francisco.
Other recent expansions of the city’s recycling efforts include
the Fantastic Three, a program that is phasing in recycling, compost
and trash collection service throughout San Francisco.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the SFAA or the SF Apartment Magazine. To reach San Francisco’s Environment Department, please call 415-355-3700 or on the web. © Copyright 2002.