12/18/1990 Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Council Minutes of 12/18/90 building a recycling plant in Russia Township which will give them the ability to recycle and. dispose of solid waste. Other cities are looking into user's fees to finance recycling programs; this can be very expensive to residents. At the present time, North Olmsted is following the wisest and most economical course. Ms. Davis felt that there are other alternatives to recycling besides using BFI. She feels the City should use other companies that will purchase paper and aluminum. Also, she suggests the City apply for State funds. Mr. McKay responded that it costs money to pick up recyclables. As far as receiving money from the State, we would have to spend some of our own money also. When we begin our program with BFI, they will be doing our recycling. One problem at tree present time, is that the market for some recyclables is very poor and practically non-existent for others. The Federal Government is looking into some programs to make it feasible to used recycled newspapers. Mr. Tallon agreed that one of the major problems is the limited market for recyclables. There are several bills before Congress to create markets for recyclables. however, until these programs become a reality, we have to accept that there is no market. It is deceiving when you see cities requiring division of trash at the curb because they are simply taking it all to the same dump. Mr. Tallon further stated that for our City, economics is a major issue. In order for us to do a program with recycling next year, it would cost approximately $300,000. This would wipe out the entire street program. Mr. McKay said that there are approximately 60 bottle bills before the State of Ohio that involve paying a deposit on plastic and aluminum containers. Once this legislation is in place, much of the recycling will be handled through this format. Ms. Davis said she was concerned because North Olmsted was not recycling while other nearby cities of Westlake, Lakewood, and Berea were. Mr. McKay responded that their programs were out of necessity. Westlake's landfill has been completely filled. They have to transport their solid waste to wherever they can get a contract. The cost of picking ~ recyclables is higher than what can be obtained for them; this type of program is not paying for itself. A representative on the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission has told the Westshore Solid Waste Committee that the purpose of recycling in Ohio is to legally stop other states fran dumping their solid waste in Ohio. The cost of recycling will ultimately fall on the cities and the residents. Mayor Boyle told Ms. Davis that recycling was a complex problem; the basis of the problem is economics. The City has only a limited amount '~` of money to work with each year. For example, approximately a million dollars is needed for streets each year; the City is spending