"Lawrence, we have a problem!"

                                                                     Act 1, Scene 1

A man in a crisp, white collared shirt with an Oakland Raiders tie, tight against his neck, is at the control board with a headset on and a thin microphone extending from his ear to his mouth (like J-Lo at the halftime for the Super Bowl).  A distant voice comes through his headphones with a panicked tone.  Listening hard to make sense at what he is hearing, the man's face begins to tighten and show signs of stress.  He places his hand on the microphone and says, "Please repeat what you just said to me."  The voice comes through louder, yet each word is said slower and more emphatic.  The man, with his forehead now glistening with sweat, calmly presses a button that will broadcast his voice to his entire team, and says, "Lawrence, we have a problem!"  End of Scene 1.

Just so everybody knows, I am the "man" in this scene and you all are the "team."

(Trying not to be an alarmist, but being one at this point) As a community, we are absolutely failing in our recycling efforts.  If it continues, this will effect us financially.....setting aside the environmental impact for this discussion.  I hope I have grabbed your attention. 

I just completed a meeting with the officials from Waste Management.  This is the company that hauls our recyclables from the condo and town house associations throughout the community.  At this point, the collection bins are showing up to 80% contamination (i.e., 80% of the volume is not recycled and is ultimately discarded as trash).  This is a crazy, alarming percentage!  (I am told under 15% is the target).

The main issue is that residents are putting their recyclables in plastic bags...and then throwing the bags in the bin.  Maybe the intention is good...and the thinking is..."well, its a PLASTIC bag so it must be ok"...but this simply results in good recyclables not actually being recycled.   These bags are NOT being opened at the facility and picked through to separate good from bad recyclables.  It's all deemed bad because its in a sealed bag.  What is the solution you ask?  First, we need to care about following rules.  Second, if you need to collect your recyclables in a bag in your house, just open the bag and dump  the contents in the bin.  Easy peasy!  If the bag isn't too ruined, re-use the bag for the next batch of recyclables you collect, and be proud at how responsible you are to your community and to your own bottom line. 

The second most common violation is PIZZA BOXES!  Stop already! (he says respectfully but forcefully....).  I admitted to being a violator a couple months ago and have now stopped and feel wonderful.  Pizza boxes go in the regular garbage.  Don't ask why?  Don't think..."It's a box, so it must be a recyclable."  It's not.  What is the solution you ask?  Just accept that this box is not a box that is recycled.... like I accept the fact that my Oakland Raiders were once a storied football franchise and now, not so much.  But I do still bleed silver and black!

The third most common violation is throwing away bottles and jars with food contents still in the container.  This ain't good people.  The bottles and jars are crushed, food stuff seeps out and then contaminates the clean recyclables.  The clean recyclables are then considered contaminated and thrown in the regular trash dump.  What's the solution you ask?  Rinse the jars and cans out before placing them in the plastic bag (see above for follow up on the plastic bag usage).

Now, I don't want this to be just about me picking on the condo and town house associations.  I write this today only because my meeting today was on this issue.  Residents that have curbside pick up are now seeing red tags on containers that are not being collected.  I reported on that particular meeting several months ago.  This is a part of a new enforcement program to improve our recycling efforts.  While you drive on our roads on collection day, just think how many plastic bags you see in those yellow containers!  The red tags provide the reasons why the container was not collected.  I would venture to say that the main reasons are the ones I discussed above.  Side Note:  Please try not to call me to complain that your container was not collected...we both know why it wasn't!  

We are in crisis mode people!  The recyclable program is not what it used to be.  Remember when we had to separate everything?  Remember when there were more things that were recyclable?  Well its all changed now.  Waste Management's contract is over in November of this year, and they have told us they have no interest in renewing the contract.  They have lost thousands and thousands of dollars each month from our contaminated recyclables.  This will certainly be a problem for those associations should no one bid for this work.  If bids are received, trust me when I tell you that the costs per ton will be much higher than what we paid in the last contract. 

And, yes, for those who wonder whether there has been any communication to the associations about the problem with its recycling.  Many, many times.  It just seems that people are choosing to do things in the easiest manner for themselves....and we simply can't sustain that attitude and keep costs down and be responsible environmentally.  We all have to start caring more about following the rules of recycling.  It takes a little effort....emphasis on the word "little."  And anyone who thinks the Township should have officers patrolling for these violators... I ask that you accept my honest response as true, "that's simply not realistic."

You may have noticed we are using our electronic display boards to help with educating on these issues.  "No pizza boxes.  No plastic bags."  If we were to eliminate these two items we could make a substantial improvement in our program.  Now listen, we still have the residents throw away stuff like bowling balls (yup, it happened), diapers (yikes....) and furniture, etc., in the large bins at the associations.  Those things unfortunately will continue to happen because the individuals that do it, do it knowing full well the items are not recyclable.  But we can change our own habits because we care enough to do so.  

The associations will be receiving a letter shortly that will let them know that the current bins will be changed from large, open containers to locked and sealed tops with small openings large enough to fit bottles, cans and cardboard, but too small to shove full plastic bags through them.  Now, this will create a moral dilemma for some people.  Will they take the extra step and open the plastic bag and discard the contents through the slots or will they simply throw the bag and the recyclables in the regular garbage bin?  I hope we can turn this all around.  Education is key...and that's the purpose of this article.    

Interesting fact:  "Houston, we have a problem" is a popular but erroneous quotation from the radio communications between the Apollo 13 astronaut John "Jack" Swigert and the NASA Mission Control Center ("Houston") during the Apollo 13 spaceflight, as astronauts communicated their discovery of the explosion that crippled their spacecraft.  What was really said was "Houston, we've had a problem."

Another interesting fact:  Easy Peasy comes from a 1970's British TV commercial for Lemon Squeezy detergent.  A little girl points out dirty, greasy dishes to an adult and then the adult produces Lemon Squeezy and they clean the dishes quickly.  At the end of the commercial the girl says "Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy!"