News: Cash For Trash
Denver Hopes To Boost 26% Recycling Rate With New Plan
In an effort to spike Denver’s low recycling rate, the city is rolling out plans to charge residential customers directly for trash and recycling services.
Denver’s recycling rate is 26 percent — meaning 74 percent of recyclable materials ends up in the landfill. That is well below the national average of 35 percent. The Mile High City is also badly trailing many other North American cities, including San Francisco and Portland, which have 80 percent or higher recycling rates. Other Colorado cities, including Longmont, Loveland and Boulder, have robust recycling programs with rates ranging from 41 percent to 58 percent.
Officials from Denver’s Office of Climate Action first announced the plan to impose new charges during the Greater Park Hill Community, Inc. monthly meeting in January. Officials plan similar presentations to other registered neighborhood organizations throughout the city in the coming weeks and months. City Council approval is expected in June, with implementation as soon as this fall.
Denver residents are not currently charged directly for their trash and recycling services. Rather the cost is absorbed through the general fund via sales and property taxes. Residents currently also have the option of paying an extra fee for composting.
Under the proposed changes, residents would pay between $9 and $21 per month, depending on the amount of trash they generate (a small bin would cost $9 per month, medium would cost $13 per month and a large would cost $21 per month). The fees would also cover recycling and composting costs. Recycling services would become weekly rather than twice a month. A rebate program would be available to help offset the costs for low-income families and seniors, said Grace Rink, the director of Denver’s Office of Climate Action.
Rink and others say the direct fee model will likely result in a higher percentage of people who recycle and compost.
The plan was generally met with support during January’s community meeting.
“I think this conversation has been happening for a long time, and I’m super excited to see it moving forward in this direction,” said GPHC board member Nam Henderson. “The only way we’re going to move the needle is to change the model.”
Other board members, including Kevin Wiegand, inquired whether there are any plans to better educate people about what is recyclable and what is not.
The city’s residential trash and recycling program currently costs $25 million annually. In a follow up inquiry, Winna MacLaren, spokeswoman for the Office of Climate Action, said a portion of the $25 million would be used to pay for the low-income rebate program. The remainder would be redirected for other uses that have not been identified.
Residential customers contribute only 18 percent of the total amount that ends up in the landfill. The majority — 82 percent — is generated by industrial, commercial, institutional and construction. Charlotte Pitt, a manager in the Denver climate action office, said 47 percent of the material that currently ends up in landfills comes from demolition and construction debris.
The proposed program would not include multifamily units (apartment buildings of more than seven families) or commercial, construction, industrial or multifamily, MacLaren said.
— Cara DeGette