Islandwide recycling fee faces hurdles
By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer
Expanding a curbside residential recycling project islandwide could cost $9 million per year and could hinge on any proposal to link fees to the program.
Mayor Jeremy Harris says charging households for the second day of rubbish collection per week could be crucial for discouraging residents from throwing away material that could be recycled. Harris is expected to say soon whether he will seek council approval for such a plan.
Some City Council members say they have no doubt that the mayor will seek a rubbish fee, but question whether it would be justified and say Harris' administration must provide more details.
"I'm not in favor of a fee at this time because they don't have a program I can take back to the community and show is reasonable and rational," Councilman Rod Tam said.
Officials say the 11,000-household recycling project that started in Mililani four months ago has been largely successful, but would cost less if residents were more careful to keep rubbish and recyclables separate.
For instance, the city spends $29 to process a ton of "green waste" such as lawn and garden trimmings, but the cost jumps to $50 per ton if it's contaminated with rubbish, city Environmental Services director Frank Doyle told council members yesterday.
He said an islandwide program could cost between $7 million and $9 million depending how it's structured, but declined to say whether the Mililani project had exceeded its $340,000 budget.
The spending included $70,000 for consultants to study the program, conduct surveys and help educate participants, and more details will be available next month, he said. The program does not include a rubbish fee.
Council members yesterday delayed a bill that would ban any fees from an islandwide program; the measure won't be heard again until after Harris unveils his proposed annual city budget that is due by next week, which must describe any proposed fees.
Most council members opposed an $8 monthly fee that Harris sought last year for second-day rubbish pickup linked to recycling, but some agree a fee could now be necessary.
Council chairman Donovan Dela Cruz said he was disappointed that officials could not provide more details about the cost of the pilot project.
"I'm surprised they didn't provide more facts and figures, given that the budget is to be proposed next week and islandwide recycling is planned for this summer," Dela Cruz said.
City recycling coordinator Suzanne Jones said the Mililani project had provided lots of useful information to guide the expansion plan. "Mililani gives us a good view for what to expect islandwide," Jones said.
A study of the voluntary project estimates that 68 percent of Mililani households participated, she said. Most of those residents said they had already been dropping off material to be recycled, but the curbside program greatly increased the amount, she said.
A survey of 400 households found that only 20 percent would keep a second day of rubbish pickup per week if a fee were charged, and 44 percent said they would rather reduce pickup to once a week, Jones said. The remaining 36 percent didn't respond, didn't indicate a preference, or said the didn't care, she said.
Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.
