Would people recycle more if they had to pay to throw out their trash?
Would people recycle more if they had to pay to throw out their trash?
That’s a concept the County Council Environmental Management Committee is scheduled to discuss Thursday, under Bill 32, sponsored by Kohala Councilwoman Margaret Wille.
The bill would allow homeowners to throw out one 33-gallon trash bag a week for free. Additional 15-gallon bags would cost 50 cents and 33-gallon bags would cost $1, under the plan.
The county briefly in 2009 considered charging people to throw away their garbage, but Mayor Billy Kenoi put a stop to it after a public outcry. Kauai has a similar program that was scheduled to take effect July 1.
The county Environmental Management Commission supports the intent of the bill, Chairman Thom Randle said in a July 7 letter to the council.
He cautioned the Department of Environmental Protection would need a budget increase for personnel and equipment in order to implement the program. The Solid Waste Division is preparing an analysis of funding that would be necessary.
Randle said fees should be increased for additional bags to $4 for 33-gallon bags and $2 for 15-gallon bags, or eliminate the option of 15-gallon bags altogether.
“Distribution logistics are challenging, complicated and costly,” Randle said.
He suggested the county beef up its recycling programs to include more types of recyclable materials and increase education.
“Rewarding for recycling rather than penalizing for not recycling would be preferable,” he said.
Wille counters arguments from skeptics that imposing a fee will lead to more roadside trash. She cited a 1997 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study of 212 communities in 30 states that implemented pay-as-you-throw programs. The amount of waste generated per household decreased 14 percent to 27 percent and recyclables collected increased by 32 percent to 59 percent in the first year, she said.
Of the communities studied, 19 percent reported an increase in illegal dumping, 48 percent reported no change, 6 percent reported less illegal dumping and 27 percent did not track or report information on illegal dumping. Implementing education programs minimized the likelihood of illegal dumping when the bag fees were implemented, she said.
Wille said the county currently spends $28 million for solid waste programs. The cost rests on the shoulders of the property owners through their taxes, and there is no break for those who reduce their waste and recycle their recyclables, she said.
The County Council Environmental Management Committee is scheduled to meet at 3 p.m. Thursday at the West Hawaii Civic Center. The public can testify there or by videoconference from the Hilo council chambers, the Waimea council office, the county facility in Kohala, the Naalehu state office building or the Pahoa neighborhood facility.
Email Nancy Cook Lauer at ncook-lauer@westhawaiitoday.com.