Starting July 6, the city of Ocala is discontinuing curbside recycling collection and moving to a drop-off program. In a news release, the city says this change is “designed to maintain recycling access while helping reduce sanitation costs for residents.”
The Ocala City Council approved this plan in February “as part of the city’s broader effort to manage increasing operational expenses and reduce the financial impact of sanitation rate adjustments on residents,” the release says.
According to the city, this move “offsets costs that would otherwise add approximately $4.96 per month to residential sanitation rates.”
The city says the current curbside collection program is problematic.
“Curbside recycling has faced ongoing contamination challenges caused by non-recyclable materials being placed in recycling carts,” the release says. “Contaminated recycling increases processing costs, reduces operational efficiency and makes the curbside program increasingly difficult to sustain in a cost-effective manner.”
The move to a dropoff system, city officials said, “allows the city to continue offering residents a recycling option while balancing service delivery with long-term fiscal responsibility.”
There will be a number of sites available to residents for dropoffs of recyclables:
Residents with recycling carts can start using them as regular garbage carts on July 6, or they can request that the cart be retrieved.
Those who have two garbage carts and a recycling cart will have the recycling cart retrieved.
For more information, call the City of Ocala Sanitation Division at (352) 351-6697.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Ocala is doing away with curbside recycling. Here’s why:
Reporting by Austin L. Miller, Ocala Star-Banner / Ocala Star-Banner
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Austin L. Miller, Ocala Star-Banner | USA TODAY Network
