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Sunday, Feb. 17, 2013 | 2 a.m.
Another view?
View more of the Las Vegas Sun's opinion section:
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I am so angry about Clark County’s decision to implement single-stream recycling. Well, angry they took eight years to decide. Seems only angry opinions get to print in the newspaper. Any fifth-grader can tell you recycling is good for America, for a host of reasons, and Las Vegas has one of the worst recycling rates in the country. Opponents need to cope with the fact that our natural resources will run out; nobody’s making any more. Every time you toss a can, plastic bottle or paper into the landfill, you’ve taken away some of our energy and added to our pollution. North Las Vegas, Henderson and Clark County have all adopted this system.
And job loss? What a joke. Where was the county when slot attendants were replaced by paper slips, or the ice man by refrigeration, or me when I lost my contract with the county when e-filing hit the courts? It goes on.
People should stop whining and help create a clean, green planet for our kids.
At my home in Texas, we've had the same recycling setup Las Vegas is going to since 1994. Regarding price for garbage service, check virtually any other major city/suburb that has the garbage pickup with the two bin poly cart setup with one pickup a week and you'll find the pricing approximately the same, about $15-$17 dollars a month. Those can whine all they want but it's the going price. Do any of the posters complaining about price actually know the cost of service to republic for the two bin/one pickup a week system? Do they have a comparative cost of the old setup? They need to provide some concrete evidence of the service being over priced.
Yes recycling is good
The new arrangement is good
What is the beef
I second the letter writer's motion.
CarmineD
In the past 50 years I've lived all over the western U. S. Las Vegas is the only place I've lived that had twice weekly trash pickup. Everywhere else it was once a week period. Are Las Vegans really that much trashier and more wasteful than anyone else? C'mon. Cowboy up and recycle.
My wife & I started recycling when the program began. It's no big deal and not very hard to do. And, now, it's been made even easier since we no longer have to sort the recyclables. There really is no excuse to being negligent when it comes to separating the reusable from the garbage, but let's face it, a system has been slowly created whereby laziness and irresponsibilty are no longer looked upon as character flaws. Rather, they are encouraged by the left so the parasitic class can get what's "theirs." That attitude spills over quite readily to all manners of misbehavior and lack of responsibility.
Who was whining when the county rejected single-stream for 10 years?
Currently only 3% participate in the red/white/blue bin recycling program. With single-stream pilot programs only 30% participated. Leaving the majority, 70%, not wanting this for various reasons. See http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2011/oct...
For those not recycling, we will have our service cut in half and pay the same rates. Republic Services states it will cost 150 million for new trucks and new bin for all households. ALL for a 30% participation rate.
If the goal was truly to increase recycling...they would install industrial sorters that recover 75-80% of recyclable material at the intake for about the same 150 million. See http://www.krausemanufacturing.com/video...
If these commenters truly were about saving the planet and increasing recycling they would agree with me...but they are not.
I'll worry about recycling when people stop having three or more children. If our resources truly are that limited, then overpopulating the world is the issue, not whether or not my junk mail goes into a recycle bin.
Dear Mayor Goodman, I don't have a problem with recycling but I do have a problem further enriching Republic Services and its shareholders at our expense. They aren't about saving the planet they are about saving money and forever increasing profits. Republic proposes to do this by massively restructuring a current contract that benefits us. Surely you can do better than the county did! Republic asks us to slash our residential garbage pickup by 50 percent and our overall waste hauling by 20 percent. In return we get shinny new containers, nothing else. Just as now, Republic will add new, more efficient equipment by attrition while reducing their labor force. City council members are waiting to see if the legislature will make it easier for Republic to push this garbage contract down collective our throats. Republic is asking that every homeowner here in Las Vegas take one for the team Republic. They've assembled their dream team of key vote elected all-stars and their actions should influence our vote next election. Here's just a sampling of Republic's recent political contribution lineup, Steve Ross, $10,000, Bob Coffin $10,000, Bob Beers $1,500 and the county's number one all-star, Steve Sisolak, $30,000. They and other designated play-for-pay recipients should all abstain from voting. Republic is not some altruistic recycling organization; they are a for-profit, executive bonus based business. Having had my own business I get it. Should Republic's new plan be adopted as-is, what will you and other elected officials tell the 70, 80, 90% of homeowners here who will never recycle using this approach? Probably nothing, eventually the state will issue a recycling "improvement" mandate and we will all pay even more for less service. How much more will likely be determined by Republic Services and their lobbyist. At least for now Republic only wants to cut our garbage collection services by 50%, but on the bright side, in doing so it really wouldn't cost any more, at least for now. Will this suffice? Not for me it won't and I recycle. All that's needed is to replace the bins with a new recycling container. Yet as simple as this is it doesn't increase profits. Republic's new recycling gimmicks do significantly increase profits and unless you pay close attention now it will forever achieve this end.
Dear Mayor Goodman, I don't have a problem with recycling nor do I have a problem with Republic Services. I do, however, think it's unfortunate that some posters complain about price of garbage service when the same services are priced the same in other cities. Republic is still picking up the SAME amount of trash per week, not less trash. Las Vegans did not get a cut in service as some posters claim. I challenge any poster to go out and gather the actual cost/benefit analysis of the old two day weekly pickup system and the new one day multi-bin system and present it to us.
The only proof of cost/benefit I need is the dismal participation rate in the pilot program at a very high cost to implement. We could get much higher recovery with an industrial sorter (watch the video I linked to earlier http://www.krausemanufacturing.com/video... ) that could pay for itself with the selling of the recyclables.
Also, as I've stated on other stories on this issue...if you are part of the 3% recycling you are not getting a cut in service. If you are part of the 97% currently not recycling your service is cut in half. The proposed plan calls for 2 pickups per week, BUT 1 for regular trash and 1 for sorted recyclables only.
Comment removed by moderator. Inappropriate
When the company picking up my recycling sends me a monthly check for my share of the proceeds I will become a hearty backer of recycling -- until then I play the game only because I want to think it does someone, somewhere some good. I recycle, but think it is stupid as practiced so far.
Watch this: (very foul language)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzLebC0mj...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wS1dv3ia...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fvz-z7Cvs...
To me, from a business standpoint, if these people can't afford to pay me anything to re use my stuff, then there is not much value in my junk.
From a "Save the Whales" standpoint, I will play along, but think it is mostly folly.
Republic Services is hard at work but not for you. AB44 as proposed.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
1 Section 1. Chapter 116 of NRS is hereby amended by adding
2 thereto a new section to read as follows:
3 1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, an association
4 of a planned community may not regulate or restrict the manner
5 in which containers for the collection of solid waste or recyclable
6 materials are stored on the premises of a residential unit with
7 curbside service.
8 2. An association of a planned community may adopt rules
9 that reasonably restrict the manner in which containers for the
10 collection of solid waste or recyclable materials are stored on the
11 premises of a residential unit with curbside service during the time
12 the containers are not within the collection area. The rules
13 adopted by the association must allow the unit's owner, or a tenant
14 of the unit's owner, to store containers for the collection of solid
15 waste or recyclable materials outside any building or garage on
16 the premises of the unit during the time the containers are not
17 within the collection area. The rules may provide that the
18 containers must be stored in such a manner that the containers
19 are screened from view from the street or sidewalk. The
20 Commission shall adopt regulations prescribing the specifications
21 of any device, structure or item used by a unit's owner or tenant to
22 screen containers for the collection of solid waste or recyclable
23 materials, including, without limitation, the size, location, color,
24 material and maximum cost of the device, structure or item and
25 the manner of attachment of the device, structure or item to any
26 other structure on the premises of the unit. A device, structure or
27 item used by a unit's owner or tenant to screen containers for the
28 collection of solid waste or recyclable materials must comply with
29 all applicable codes and regulations.
30 3. An association of a planned community may adopt rules
31 that reasonably restrict the conditions under which containers for
32 the collection of solid waste or recyclable materials are placed in
33 the collection area, including, without limitation:
34 (a) The boundaries of the collection area;
35 (b) The time at which the containers may be placed in the
36 collection area;
AB44 continued
1 (c) The length of time for which the containers may be kept in
2 the collection area.
3 4. As used in this section:
4 (a) "Collection area" means the area designated for the
5 collection of the contents of containers for the collection of solid
6 waste or recyclable materials.
7 (b) "Curbside service" means the collection of solid waste or
8 recyclable materials on an individual basis for each residential
9 unit by an entity that is authorized to collect solid waste or
10 recyclable materials.
11 (c) "Recyclable material" has the meaning ascribed to it in
12 NRS 444A.013.
13 (d) "Residential unit" means an attached or detached unit
14 intended or designed to be occupied by one family.
15 (e) "Solid waste" has the meaning ascribed to it in
16 NRS 444.490.
17 Sec. 2. NRS 116.1203 is hereby amended to read as follows:
18 116.1203 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsections 2
19 and 3, if a planned community contains no more than 12 units and is
20 not subject to any developmental rights, it is subject only to NRS
21 116.1106 and 116.1107 unless the declaration provides that this
22 entire chapter is applicable.
23 2. The provisions of NRS 116.12065 and the definitions set
24 forth in NRS 116.005 to 116.095, inclusive, to the extent that the
25 definitions are necessary to construe any of those provisions, apply
26 to a residential planned community containing more than 6 units.
27 3. Except for NRS 116.3104, 116.31043, 116.31046 and
28 116.31138, the provisions of NRS 116.3101 to 116.350, inclusive,
29 and section 1 of this act and the definitions set forth in NRS
30 116.005 to 116.095, inclusive, to the extent that such definitions are
31 necessary in construing any of those provisions, apply to a
32 residential planned community containing more than 6 units.
Richard,
AB44 just states that associations of planned communities are required to allow outdoor storage of the two bin carts under certain circumstances.
What were you hoping to accomplish by cutting & pasting sections 1 & 2 of the bill?
I am not or will not sort trash for republic , I don't care what they give me to store trash in. Trash is trash what they do with it I could care less and the blue lid can has the same trash the black one does, I am not employed by republic and I am not doing thier work for them, My garbage guys wont even dump my containers that look just like thiers , they said they're not allowed to and they want me to sort my trash? nnnnnope.