Recycling in Walton County

Good question, NDY. Yes. I would like an answer to that one also.....

As far as this household is concerned, we will GLADY pay $ 5 addition per month to put recyclables out at the street.

Right now, I spend at least that much on gas driving out of my way to obtain blue bags or going directly to the recycle trailers.

I have wondered about this ever since I moved here from Tallahassee. There, we had curb side recycling forever...and Waste Management had the contract for trash pick up same as here.

Perhaps someone in the County government can tell us why recycling here is such an issue --of both ease and money. Why would it cost more to pick up recycling from the curb and keep it separate from the garbage?

Doesn't make any sense to me.

I was told by someone at the Regional Utilities that my garbage was being opened at the landfill by convicts and that they were pulling out the recyclables. Disturbing if true for a few reasons but encouraging also if you want to recycle the lazy way.

I was told by someone at the Regional Utilities that my garbage was being opened at the landfill by convicts and that they were pulling out the recyclables. Disturbing if true for a few reasons but encouraging also if you want to recycle the lazy way.

So, are they saying they do this to give the inmates something to do......

How about one of our 2X/wk pickups is for recycling. I personally can't fill up my can 2x a week, and if I could, would just buy an additional can.

possibly the $5 is for the purchase of the blue and green bins...(but that would only carry on for two weeks.

Personally, I think it is a crime that we don't already have curbside.

How about one of our 2X/wk pickups is for recycling. I personally can't fill up my can 2x a week, and if I could, would just buy an additional can.

possibly the $5 is for the purchase of the blue and green bins...(but that would only carry on for two weeks.

Personally, I think it is a crime that we don't already have curbside.

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Especially since 30 A is soon supposed to be designated as a U.S. National Scenic Highway soon, and especially in light of the fact that we live in a very unique eco-system!

Here is a full Walton Sun article on this a little bit back.

Hope to have a wonderful solution to this!

I was told by someone at the Regional Utilities that my garbage was being opened at the landfill by convicts and that they were pulling out the recyclables. Disturbing if true for a few reasons but encouraging also if you want to recycle the lazy way.

Yes, it is true and it is EXTREMELY disturbing.

I have wondered about this ever since I moved here from Tallahassee. There, we had curb side recycling forever...and Waste Management had the contract for trash pick up same as here.

Perhaps someone in the County government can tell us why recycling here is such an issue --of both ease and money. Why would it cost more to pick up recycling from the curb and keep it separate from the garbage?

Doesn't make any sense to me.

Doesn't make sense to me either. WasteMgt logo has something about "thinking green" on every truck, yet they are not recycling in WalCo, from what I understand. In Asheville, Waste Mgt is the contracted collectors, and they make one pickup a week. The truck has one bin for garbage, another for recyclable plastics, and a third bin for paper and cardboard. The residents separate the garbage from the recyclables. The guys on the truck toss them accordingly into each bin. They are just as fast as the guys picking up garbage only, around here.

How about one of our 2X/wk pickups is for recycling. I personally can't fill up my can 2x a week, and if I could, would just buy an additional can.

possibly the $5 is for the purchase of the blue and green bins...(but that would only carry on for two weeks.

Personally, I think it is a crime that we don't already have curbside.

Residents could buy their own bins. They already make us pay for our own garbage cans. The only problem I see with making one of the two weekly pickups during season, a recycling pickup, is the potential problem with the rentors garbage needs. Still, I think WM can convert their trucks to three bins and have a great recycling/garbage program around here.

I have wondered about this ever since I moved here from Tallahassee. There, we had curb side recycling forever...and Waste Management had the contract for trash pick up same as here.

Perhaps someone in the County government can tell us why recycling here is such an issue --of both ease and money. Why would it cost more to pick up recycling from the curb and keep it separate from the garbage?

Doesn't make any sense to me.

I grew up in Tallahassee and it took years of fighting to get the curbside pick up in place. Even then it was only in the city limits. This BTW was about 15 years ago so the city limits were much smaller than today.

I was told by someone at the Regional Utilities that my garbage was being opened at the landfill by convicts and that they were pulling out the recyclables. Disturbing if true for a few reasons but encouraging also if you want to recycle the lazy way.

Makes you want to get a shredder doesn't it? My understand was that before they were sorting thru the raw garbage looking for recyclables and some local kids actually came up (saw a movie/documentary) with the idea that blue bags would make it easier and faster thus raising the amount recycled.

What do you mean, "it makes you want to get a shredder?" You should already have at least one diamond shredder. The vertical cut shredder will be easy for someone to put together credit card offers and bills, for someone who has time on their hands.

It took forever to get curbside recycling here in Dallas. Now, we have two large plastic bins on wheels...one for regular trash and one for recycling. You must request the recycling bin. Regular trash is picked up twice a week. The recycling bin is picked up once every two weeks. What I have found for our house is that we only need regular pick up maybe once a week and recycling is always overflowing after two weeks.

Thanks, Miss Kitty. It is interesting to know how it is being done elsewhere. So I suppose the contents of the recycle bin are sorted someplace else after being picked up? Maybe our prisoners could still have work doing that?
It is not as if we are trying to reinvent the wheel here. I think it would be good if someone from the county, someone from Waste Management and a citizen or two looked at what is being done elsewhere. Informally, without another expensive "study." Seems like it would become clear enough how to proceed. And how to pay for it.

I don't have a problem with the current system. I have my choice of two different recycling bin locations just on my way to the library.

Thanks, Miss Kitty. It is interesting to know how it is being done elsewhere. So I suppose the contents of the recycle bin are sorted someplace else after being picked up? Maybe our prisoners could still have work doing that?
It is not as if we are trying to reinvent the wheel here. I think it would be good if someone from the county, someone from Waste Management and a citizen or two looked at what is being done elsewhere. Informally, without another expensive "study." Seems like it would become clear enough how to proceed. And how to pay for it.

Yes, that is what makes it a no brainer! How easy to just throw all your recyclables in one bin! I have become quite the stickler about recycling and find myself digging through the regular trash after the rest of my family. It has become a sport for me.

Yes, that is what makes it a no brainer! How easy to just throw all your recyclables in one bin! I have become quite the stickler about recycling and find myself digging through the regular trash after the rest of my family. It has become a sport for me.

What do you mean, "it makes you want to get a shredder?" You should already have at least one diamond shredder. The vertical cut shredder will be easy for someone to put together credit card offers and bills, for someone who has time on their hands.

We do, but we rarely use it since a friend of ours became a pyro and bought a fireplace. Now we just burn most of the junk. I was refrencing elgordoboy since he didn't mention having one.

We do, but we rarely use it since a friend of ours became a pyro and bought a fireplace. Now we just burn most of the junk. I was refrencing elgordoboy since he didn't mention having one.

I have two garbage sacks full to be burnt or shredded at first opportunity. You are correct I do not have a shredder atm.

I thought the whole issue w/ the blue bags was contamination (people putting stuff in the bags that isn't recyclable).

I fail to see how changing from a bag to a container solves this.

i think the difference is that the blue bag system enables the recycling to be co-mingled with the regular garbage then needs to be segregated at the dump, then moved to the recycling area. If bins are utilized with a separate pickup, the sorting will already have been done by the homeowner, and the recycling can go straight to the station.

I have two garbage sacks full to be burnt or shredded at first opportunity. You are correct I do not have a shredder atm.

I will contact said pyro friend and see if we can't set up a burning cocktail hour. You do drink right?

I thought the whole issue w/ the blue bags was contamination (people putting stuff in the bags that isn't recyclable).

It's my understanding the problem is that the blue bags are getting compacted in the truck, and so the contents are being contaminated from the ordinary garbage riding along with it. In other words, it is all getting smushed together. The blue bags are not arriving intact. A seperate curbside pickup would eliminate that problem because the entire truck would contain only recyling.

funny thinking back to when we lived in Gainesville, FL (go gators) another lifetime ago, and curbside recycling was a very established thing to do. Gainesville has always been rather progressive and green.

so, fast forward about 18 years to Walton County. not quite there yet. but we will be... I feel confident!

We do, but we rarely use it since a friend of ours became a pyro and bought a fireplace. Now we just burn most of the junk. I was refrencing elgordoboy since he didn't mention having one.

That is a great way to start a chimney fire. I know, we had one years ago when we lived up north.

I will contact said pyro friend and see if we can't set up a burning cocktail hour. You do drink right?

Just remember that burning wood and paper are additional polluters.

It's my understanding the problem is that the blue bags are getting compacted in the truck, and so the contents are being contaminated from the ordinary garbage riding along with it. In other words, it is all getting smushed together. The blue bags are not arriving intact. A seperate curbside pickup would eliminate that problem because the entire truck would contain only recyling.

... maybe, unless the garbage truck had separate bins for garbage and recyclables. As I mentioned, Asheville garbage trucks have three separate bins, garbage in the back, paper/cardboard in another bin up front, with the plastic bin. Seems easy enough to me, and we could still have recycling and garbage pickup two times a week. Kitty noted that she need recycling pick up more often than they operated it. I, tend to have about half and half, garbage to recyclables.

I agree that an expensive study need not be performed. Simply communicate with other cities and learn how they do it, and if it works well, what would they like to do differently. We live in the age of the internet. Contacting other people ain't rocket science.

As I mentioned, Asheville garbage trucks have three separate bins, garbage in the back, paper/cardboard in another bin up front, with the plastic bin. Seems easy enough to me, and we could still have recycling and garbage pickup two times a week

This sounds like an efficient way to do it. Do you think it would be expensive to outfit the existing trucks that way?