Recyclable collections up 21%

The Journal Sentinel staff

Waukesha Maybe Waukesha County residents are particularly law-abiding. Maybe they're winter pack rats. Or maybe they party hearty over the holidays.

Any one of those reasons could help explain why recyclable collections at the county plant hit their highest level ever this quarter.

David Eger, manager of the county's solid waste management programs, said he had expected a slight increase in recyclables for 1995, given the fact that the state's ban on 11 types of recyclables took full force in January.

Nothing prepared him for what happened, however.

For the first three months of 1995, the county recycling plant at 220 S. Prairie Ave. has processed nearly 21% more material than in the first quarter of 1994 4,486 tons of recyclables, compared with 3,716 tons last year.

March figures hit an all-time high of 1,706 tons, compared with 1,454 tons in March 1994.

"It's the highest month we've ever had in our history," Eger said.

Why is it happening? Ban Broadened

The landfill ban on most recyclables went into effect in January. "It's now mandatory, so people who weren't doing it before now are doing it," Eger said. "I think the law is having more of an affect than we anticipated."

In addition, March collections typically are higher than usual. "People are into the spring thing," Eger said, suggesting that spring prompts people to clean up and clear out goods that may have piled up over the winter.

Holidays, and maybe St. Patrick's Day in particular, seem to prompt more glass collections, recycling plant manager John Cubbison said. But that doesn't explain why newsprint collections are way up, Eger said. Curbside Pickups Help

Most communities were recycling before, but Eger said a few more added municipal programs as of Jan. 1.

Those are Big Bend, the Town of Pewaukee and the Town of Delafield. In the past, it was up to local residents to contract privately for recyclables collections with their haulers in the two towns.

"When you go to curbside, you get a significantly higher amount of material," he said.

For the first time this year, the county is also collecting cardboard, one of the banned items as of Jan. 1. But collections are only at 13 drop-off sites, not at the curb. Eventually, curbside collections of cardboard will boost the intake even more, he predicted.

Some waste haulers who serve multifamily residences now drop off recyclables at the county plant, said Karen Fiedler, recycling coordinator for the county. Many still haul to private plants, but some use the county's facility as well.

"Before this year, the haulers weren't doing much with multifamily units," Fiedler said.

Revenue Ahead of Pace

Revenue from recyclables, which have increased significantly in the past year, doubling in some cases, are higher than ever.

Eger said that for the first two months, the county's share of recycling revenue totaled $242,000, well ahead of the pace that set a record in 1994. The county's share totaled $250,955 in 1992, $414,570 in 1993 and $872,935 in 1994.

The increase is due to more recyclables and higher prices for processed recyclables. Revenue per ton totaled $18.56 in 1992, $26.52 in 1993 and $53.09 in 1994. Plant Pushed to Limit

The heavy volume of plastics, paper, glass and cans has pushed the 21-person recycling plant operation to its limit, Cubbison said. The plant, designed to handle 80 tons of trash a day, is now averaging about 74 tons, Eger said.

That will soon change.

Next month, the county expects to begin construction on changes to the existing plant that will expand its capacity to 140 tons per day. Bids are scheduled to be opened on May 5.

Eger said plans called for adding a second floor to the office area, including an educational center for the public, providing more floor space to store the newly arriving recyclables from waste haulers, and creating two processing lines one for paper and another for the rest.

The project is expected to cost $2 million.

"We're recycling the plant again," Fiedler said.

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