Recycle!!

After visiting family in Connecticut over the summer and noticing their three trashcans in the kitchen, it got me to thinking.  Why doesn’t the City of Joplin require their residents to recycle?  Recycling is optional for most Americans, but some bigger cities do make it mandatory.  Those cities include Seattle, San Diego, and Pittsburgh, PA.  Some cities do require local businesses to recycle, but not their residents.  Those areas include Honolulu, Hawaii and Gainesville, Florida.  http://environment.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=environment&cdn=newsissues&tm=212&f=11&su=p284.13.342.ip_p504.6.342.ip_&tt=2&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.seattle.gov/util/Services/Recycling

In my household we separate our plastic from the rest of the trash for recycling, but we would separate and recycle more if the city provided curbside pickup and receptacles.  In Joplin, you do have the option of purchasing recycling bins, but they are more on the pricy side.  The city puts out a newsletter with information on recycling in our community.  You can view that newsletter by clicking here: http://www.joplinmo.org/faq.aspx?TID=39.  In bigger cities they not only provide citizens with the proper receptacles for their recyclables, but also provide pick up service.  Here in Joplin you have to deliver your recyclables to the recycling center and this must be done during certain hours of operation.  This makes it even more inconvenient for residents and makes them less likely to participate. 

You may be wondering why the United States doesn’t require its citizens to recycle.  The answer to that question comes down to money.  It costs more to recycle than to just send the waste to area landfills.  Sad, but true.  There are some ways to reduce the cost of recycling, which some cities have utilized.  This includes reducing the frequency of curbside pickups and making the sorting of waste automated.  http://environment.about.com/od/recycling/a/must_recycle.htm

I believe recycling is very important and think more cities need to get on board with making it not only mandatory, but also more convenient for residents!