Loading...
#1 Recycle Away From Home Program City Manager’s Office Memorandum December 14, 2009 TO: Janesville City Council FROM: Al Hulick, Management Analyst SUBJECT: Presentation by Janesville Sustainable Committee on Recycling Away From Home Program. Summary The Sustainable Janesville Committee would like to develop a Recycle Away From Home (RAH) Program for the City of Janesville. The RAH Program is intended to address recycling efforts away from home at community events, community facilities, School District facilities, and local businesses. The Committee has worked with City Staff and several other members of the Community to develop a program outline. Staff Recommendation City Staff supports the concept of creating a formal RAH Program, and is looking for City Council support before moving forward with the development of a program. City Manager recommendation The City Manager supports the suggested motion, and the City is currently evaluating all facilities to ensure recycling is provided. I am supportive of an RAH program in the schools, but believe this should be a School District initiated program. I am also supportive of an awareness campaign with the business community, but would be careful about implementation of any enforcement policies at this economic time. Suggested Motion I move to support the development of a Recycle Away From Home Program which will be brought back at a future meeting for City Council review and approval; and to move forward with the inclusion of recycling in the special event permit process. Request The Sustainable Janesville Committee has been working with City Staff and various community members to develop a comprehensive Recycle Away From Home Program. The RAH Program is intended to address recycling efforts away from home at community events, community facilities, School District facilities, and local businesses. The Sustainable Janesville Committee will be presenting at this evening’s Council Meeting to provide additional information regarding the proposed program and request the Council’s support to formally develop a RAH Program for the City of Janesville. Background Recycle Away From Home initiatives are intended to encourage the implementation of programs to ensure recycling options are available to citizens while away from home. At community events, community facilities, school facilities, and local businesses, RAH Programs attempt to address the gaps in recycling efforts throughout the community. With the adoption of the 2010 City Budget, City Staff has already committed to implementing a pilot program for recycling in the parks. The budget calls for recycling containers to be placed at four major parks in Janesville (Traxler, Palmer, Rockport, and Riverside). Recycling options are currently available at all other City facilities. Additionally, the Committee is working with City Staff to address recycling at special events by amending the Special Event Permitting process to require a recycling plan be included as part of the special event permit. The inclusion of a recycling plan will require those taking out a special event permit to ensure that recycling options will be provided at the event. Sustainable Janesville Committee members have been working with the School District and local waste haulers to develop a recycling program. The City Administration has encouraged the Committee to continue to work with the School District and local waste haulers to develop their own plans. The City Administration believes that a RAH Program that is based on encouragement, education, and awareness would be the most effective approach towards gaining public participation and support. The Sustainable Janesville Committee has developed a RAH program outline that intends to address these gaps at community events, community facilities, School District facilities, and local businesses. With the City Council’s support, the Committee’s intends to continue working with City Staff and other community leaders to formalize a RAH Program. cc: Eric Levitt Jacob Winzenz RAHRAH RAH ecycling way from ome Presented by The Sustainable Janesville Committee ? Recycling in WisconsinRecycling in Wisconsin Sustainable Janesville ? Law Passed in1990 to help manage solid waste, and encourage reduction, reuse and recycling Why recycle?Why recycle? Sustainable Janesville ? Recycling one glass bottle saves ? light up a 100 watt enough energy to bulb for 4 hours. By recycling every plastic bottle in the ? two billion tons nation approximately of plastic would be diverted from landfills. Plastic bottles take 700 years to decompose in landfills. Recycling 1 ton of paper saves about ? 17 trees which absorb 250 lbs. of carbon dioxide from the air. Curbside Recycling…Curbside Recycling… Sustainable Janesville ? City of Janesville hired ? first recycling coordinator in 1989 Remote drop locations ? were first implemented 1993 curbside residential ? recycling established 34% of waste is diverted ? from WI landfills by recycling or composting But what about when we are AWAY Sustainable Janesville ? from home? City of Janesville City of Janesville --RAHRAH "Recycling Away From Home""Recycling Away From Home" Sustainable Janesville ? At Special Events or Festivals ? Parks, Stadiums & Community Facilities ? At our Schools ? Public, private, K-12 ? UW Rock County ? At our Workplace ? Business & Industry ? Examples of Special Events…Examples of Special Events… Sustainable Janesville ? Rotary Corn Roast ? Kiwanis Fest of Ales ? Rock Aqua Jays Shows ? & Tournaments Rock County Fair ? Ground Events Block Parties ? Family Reunions ? Farmer’s Market ? Family Fun Fest ? Rock Around the Block ? Portable bins make Portable bins make recycling easyrecycling easy Sustainable Janesville ? CycleMax System uses a clear bag ? enables people to see ? their contribution distinguishes between ? recycling containers and waste cans collapsible for easy ? storage and transport Examples of Community Facilities…Examples of Community Facilities… Sustainable Janesville ? Monterey Stadium ? Recycling ? Ice Arena ? Recycling ? Senior Center ? Some recycling ? City Buildings ? Some recycling ? Park RecyclingPark Recycling Sustainable Janesville ? Recycling in 4 major parks is ? included in our 2010 budget The parks department plans to: Acquire Recycling containers ? Make recycling convenient ? Plan for recycling collection ? Assistance by “friends” or ? service groups if needed School RecyclingSchool Recycling Sustainable Janesville ? SJC will support and encourage recycling in our local schools. Opportunities to get involved with: WI DNR's Clean & Healthy ? Schools program PTA's or Student groups to ? implement recycling programs Encourage schools to provide ? recycling opportunities for students in classroom and common areas Parker High School bins ? Research Grants Available ? Business RecyclingBusiness Recycling Sustainable Janesville ? Offer ideas to local businesses, like the ? WI DNR's Green Tier Program, "The Ideal State for Business Environmental Stewardship" Encourage Businesses to provide ? recycling opportunities for customers and employees Offer assistance in creating a simple ? "recycling” plan for businesses that want to do more Work with Licensed Haulers to promote ? recycling program for their customers Offer recycling “shout out” ? opportunities on SJC’s website Planning for RAH…Planning for RAH… Sustainable Janesville ? City Council Support of a Recycling Away from Home Program ? Purchase & grant applications (portable bins) for Special Events ? Adjust event applications for Special Events (Leisure Services) ? Support RAH programs for Schools and Businesses, offering ? plan ideas and educational opportunities Create an educational video with JA-TV, possibly using High ? School students’ marketing programs to educate and promote recycling programs for the community Maintain recycling information on the City's website – ? requirements and benefits of program Create a network of supporters through service groups and ? volunteers Follow up and monitor successes on SJC’s website ? Recycling benefits Recycling benefits everyone! everyone! Sustainable Janesville ? Re-using natural resources makes both environmental and economic good sense. By conserving our dwindling supply of resources and protecting the few remaining undamaged ecosystems left on the earth, we are preserving them for future generations!