Town of Washington Recycling Update

Town of Washington
Recycling Update

8-27-2020

As summer comes to a close I thought I would share our current recycling data and updates to our recycling program in Washington. 
Recycling markets have become relatively stable in the last couple of months. We have actually seen small revenues in our loose cardboard collection starting in late March 2020. We have recycled 11.5 tons this year and collected $150.00 dollars in revenue. The cardboard is trucked to Keene with our loose mixed paper.
Mixed paper continues to cost us $30.00 a ton currently. We have generated 9.5 tons this year and have spent $377.00 to date in tipping fees. This material is trucked to Keene and they process it into bales for an end use. Several paper mills in the North East are mixing these recycled paper bales with virgin feed stock for new paper products. 
Our comingle collection of #1 and #2 plastics are combined with steel, aluminum cans and are trucked to Keene for separation and recycling. These items are no longer exported to China and are being processed in domestic markets.  We have collected 13.5 tons this year and pay a processing fee of $55.00 per ton. We do not accept #3 through #7 plastics at this time because Keene does not want the low grade plastic. These low grade plastics are deposited in the trash compactor for landfill disposal. 
The glass recycling program Washington uses now collects glass containers and we ship them to New London where it is run through a special crushing machine to produce Processed Glass Aggregate. This commodity is used as sub base fill for road and construction projects. We have shipped 30 tons of glass this year at a cost of about $1,100.00. 
Construction and demolition recycling has generated 52 tons to date this year. We pay $86.00 per ton to dispose of this waste at the ERRCO facility located in Epping, NH This waste is further recycled and separated or processed into landfill cover.  
Other non-recycled wastes collected this year include household waste and landfilled demolition. We have trucked a combined 451 tons to the Mt Carberry landfill located in Berlin, NH.  
We will be starting our textile collection program again very soon. Planet Aid stopped collection in mid-May this year due to the pandemic. We have not been able to get them to respond to our inquiries about starting collections again. Therefore we are actively investigating local options at this time. If you do have clothing, shoes, boots and belts to recycle, please pack them in a clean trash bag and ask the attendant about proper drop off. 
Our household hazardous waste collection in August was a great success. Over 75 households participated and we collected over 2,850 pounds of hazardous wastes. These wastes were trucked to appropriate permitted facilities and disposed of properly. This collection is very important in keeping our groundwater and residents safe. 

Composting is still available for leaf and yard wastes and some table scraps. These wastes can save taxpayer dollars by diverting up to 25% of our solid waste into a reusable commodity. If you need compost, please see the attendant for available inventory. 
There has been much discussion and confusion regarding the issuance of Transfer Station stickers. The Selectmen are actively reviewing all current policies and will be presenting updated procedures for obtaining a sticker soon. In the meantime, we ask that all users at the transfer station get a sticker on their vehicle. All you need is proof of property ownership and a valid ID. There is no cost and it enables the attendant to easily identify permissible users of the facility. If you do not have a sticker and need to get the proper information to do so, you will still be allowed to dispose of your trash. Stoddard residents are permitted to use the transfer station and we have tax information to verify their information.  Please be patient and we will work through this together. We must ensure that we are not disposing of trash from outside our community. We have found several instances where some from out of Town were using your recycling center. This is not only against the Towns Recycling ordinance but is an added cost to you as a tax payer. 
There is more information on the Towns web site at https://www.washingtonnh.org/recycling-transfer-station
Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns and know we are here to help you recycle.