Perspectives: The way forward is single-stream recycling

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September 19, 2008

Remi DePommier

Last week, the City of Haverhill published a Request for Quotation asking companies to bid on buying our recyclable material based on two options, single- and dual-stream.

The responses, due Sept. 23, will form the basis of the city's decision, this October, on the future of recycling in Haverhill. This is a momentous occasion — an opportunity for a decision in which we simultaneously "do the right thing" for our environment, improve the city finances, and upgrade the image of Haverhill in the Commonwealth and beyond.

Three options are on the table: 1) Maintain the status-quo with curbside pickup of only paper and cardboard, 2) Collect all recyclables at curbside from a single container (single-stream), and 3) Collect recyclables using two containers (dual-stream), one for paper/cardboard and another for all other recyclables.

Team Haverhill believes that the best way forward for Haverhill is single-stream recycling.

Here's why:

Highest diversion. Comparative studies of single- vs. dual-stream programs yield a unanimous result: single-stream maximizes the amount of material that is recycled. Every ton recycled is diverted away from waste disposal; hence, single-stream saves the most on waste disposal fees. Single-stream recycling will provide the city with the best tool to significantly reduce these fees from the $1.36 million it paid last year, reliably improving its finances without cutting any programs or services. Haverhill's $1.72 million revenue from Covanta will not shrink because the City receives this payment for all waste, from any community, incinerated in our plant; Covanta has every incentive to replace Haverhill's tonnage with waste from other towns.

Smallest startup cost. Capitol, our hauler until 2012, will collect our single-stream material using the same routes and rear-loading packer trucks as it presently uses for paper collection. No change to our contract with Capitol is required for single-stream. This is in sharp contrast with dual-stream, which would require additional routes and trucks, the cost of which would be "prohibitive," according to one city official.

Least risk. Single-stream minimizes our exposure to price fluctuations in the paper market. The $100 net revenue per ton we receive from Empire, the new buyer of our paper, should not give the city a false sense of comfort. Indeed, our paper revenue is directly tied to a commodity index that varies based on supply and demand. The last two years' rising trend in recycled paper prices cannot be sustained. Unlike paper-only and dual-stream, single-stream stabilizes the per ton revenue from our recyclables because it combines several types of materials — just as a

mutual-fund minimizes market fluctuations by combining several types of investments.

Global trend. We are not alone in advocating for single-stream recycling. In the last two years, 18 Massachusetts municipalities have changed their programs from dual- to single-stream. Earlier this year, Boston Mayor Tom Menino announced:

"... Boston will introduce single stream recycling. The city will provide larger bins, so you don't have to sort paper from plastic. This meets people's desire to conserve resources, and it saves the city money by decreasing the amount of solid waste that we generate. We have tested this program in Jamaica Plain and Roslindale, and recycling increased 53 percent. We really are turning Beantown into Greentown!"

Just this summer, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter reported that city's early success and intention to expand the program: "Single-stream recycling has proven so effective in increasing the amount of recyclables collected, and we will build upon that success as we expand city-wide.... The time has come for all Philadelphians to declare their BINdependence." Recycling is up 35 percent since the single-stream pilot started there in 2006.

The big picture: The economics of a recycling program are complex, involving both expenses and revenues that must be factored in to provide an accurate baseline from which to plan the future. Both paper-only and dual-stream recycling may appear attractive when looking only at the revenue derived from the resale of the material, but these approaches fail the test when we look at the whole picture. Single stream is the best way forward for Haverhill.

This statement was authored by Remi Depommier and adopted as the official position of Team Haverhill on Sept. 8, 2008.