Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2011 | 2:02 a.m.
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In Saturday’s article in the Las Vegas Sun on recycling in Henderson, Bob Coyle, vice president of government affairs for Republic Services, said, “By giving them the large (recycling cart), we’re doubling the amount of recycling that can fit in the containers.” The article notes that recycling pickups will double from every two weeks to weekly while trash pickups will be halved.
If the new recycling containers are twice the size of the current ones, why does Republic need to pick up the recycling twice as often? Republic collects trash 104 times a year and recycling 26 times. Under the new plan, Republic will pick up trash 52 times and recycling 52 times. So Republic will do less work, get the same money or more, and we’ll have to deal with the smell of trash in the Las Vegas heat. Not to mention that the typical garage doesn’t have room for the container.
Henderson Councilwoman Debra March’s quote, about recyclables blowing around, concerns a change in container not a change in the frequency of collection.
How about we throw everything in one container, Republic picks up twice a week (same as the new plan), and Republic sorts out the recyclable material applying the cost savings of 26 fewer recycling collections?
Are there any politicians around here who have considered these issues? To put it another way, are any politicians doing what we pay them for?
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