Where does the recycling go from here?

[merrymini]

There was a meeting held at Savannah on May 6 by the NSCUDD when no meetings were being held anywhere and we were told that no one could meet at any of the centers because of the pandemic. People were probably unable or unwilling to go because of the health situation. Is that when you hold a meeting? They have had meetings before and will meet again on June 18. A great many people may not be here at that time and I may not be here either to give my opinion. It is my belief, that my opinion and everyone else’s, counts for very little in this matter. Even though there is to be a vote, they, like the commissioners concerning the rate increase on county taxes, will meet and greet and dismiss. They will go with the no recycling which they are already doing south of route 44. Are they landfilling or burning? Both glass and aluminum can be endlessly recycled, especially aluminum, which is a nonrenewable resource. I, for one, protest and will be saving my aluminum and cancelling my subscription to the newspaper, as they will no longer be recycling newsprint. Instead of finding ways to keep our planet clean, they will burn it all and we will have to suck it up, both literally and figuratively. Some education and changes would probably help this situation but I doubt any of that will be done. So they will ask for opinions and then ignore them, that is my guess. I doubt very much that this will be allowed to appear so I will save it and post elsewhere too. Going in the wrong direction!

[coffeebean]

There was a meeting held at Savannah on May 6 by the NSCUDD when no meetings were being held anywhere and we were told that no one could meet at any of the centers because of the pandemic. People were probably unable or unwilling to go because of the health situation. Is that when you hold a meeting? They have had meetings before and will meet again on June 18. A great many people may not be here at that time and I may not be here either to give my opinion. It is my belief, that my opinion and everyone else’s, counts for very little in this matter. Even though there is to be a vote, they, like the commissioners concerning the rate increase on county taxes, will meet and greet and dismiss. They will go with the no recycling which they are already doing south of route 44. Are they landfilling or burning? Both glass and aluminum can be endlessly recycled, especially aluminum, which is a nonrenewable resource. I, for one, protest and will be saving my aluminum and cancelling my subscription to the newspaper, as they will no longer be recycling newsprint. Instead of finding ways to keep our planet clean, they will burn it all and we will have to suck it up, both literally and figuratively. Some education and changes would probably help this situation but I doubt any of that will be done. So they will ask for opinions and then ignore them, that is my guess. I doubt very much that this will be allowed to appear so I will save it and post elsewhere too. Going in the wrong direction!

South of 44 does not recycle but they have a program which is "trash to energy". Isn't all the trash converted to energy with this program? I see nothing wrong with it if that is actually what is happening.

[twoplanekid]

Read at the meeting so in the public record

((I appreciate the efforts of District staff last year to hold multiple meetings to educate our customers on the issues of recycling and waste management in the Villages. It’s unfortunate that this final public meeting on options presented for the first time to the public must occur in a Covid -19 environment where many residents are still fearful of attending any meeting. I have spent many hours review the videos and audio tapes from previous meetings. The vast majority of public comments at previous NSCUDD Waste Management meetings centered on consumer satisfaction with the current trash services, improving best practices in recycling and expanding the flow of recycling information to the public. It seems that everyone wants NSCUDD to continue to recycle and enhance recycling information flowing from NSCUDD to our customers. I would now share my views and opinions to both members of this board and the public to stimulate further discussions on the three options presented to us today.

For me, the Covanta only option is a non-starter because it’s not recycling in any way, shape or form. As per Jacobs on Aug 22, 2019 under Benefits of Recycling and I quote: “Reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills and Waste to Energy facilities”. I have asked many Village sales agents to describe how new residents feel about their trash services south of 44 where everything is taken to be burned. They want what we have, a recycling program. We must continue to have a waste management program that includes recycling and try to minimize further cost increases on top of the increases we enacted last year.

So, that leaves the other two options that still have recycling in them. Note that Covanta will charge us a lot more per ton to burn our trash than what WMI charges to take it to a landfill which WMI says has another 30 years before it will be filled. I am intrigued with the combining of yard waste and recycling pickups to eliminate one weekly pickup. Not sure why this procedure is not found in both of these two options. If this procedure would further reduce the cost of the WMI option which is already the least costly, I would be more inclined to say it would win my vote as it continues with the kind of operation that our customers now enjoy as per their votes at the clicker meeting.

The bulk waste/white goods pickup fee was first brought to our attention by Jacobs because some people are abusing the free pickup service that NSCUDD provides. I don’t believe that charging everyone a flat $10 fee addresses that specific problem. Sometimes the fixing of a simple issue morphs into addressing the wrong problem.

As this board will soon be asked by staff to vote on one of these three options, I would encourage our customers/the public to send your comments by email to us at nsboard@districtgov.org as found on the District web site under NSCUDD. At this time I would ask my fellow board members to express their opinions on what is presented today. Remember, board members can only discuss NSCUDD business among themselves at an official meeting, so let’s not miss this opportunity to let other board members and the public learn about our thoughts on these options.))

At this meeting, all other board members voted to have staff prepare the Covanta only option for final approval at a June NSCUDD meeting.

P.S. Please note that NSCUDD will have increased customers trash rates by 24% in one years time ($17.90 to $22.24 new Oct. 2020 rate if approved) plus added 2.5% automatic yearly rate increases and likely a charge for the now free white goods pickup. And will charge about 10% more ($22.24 vs $20.35 excluding any added sales tax- Wildwood & Fruitland Park) than the private trash firm who services all Villagers south of 44 with 2 pickups per week taking everything to the same Covanta facility. This assumes that the Covanta only option is passed by the NSCUDD board.

[JoMar]

There was a meeting held at Savannah on May 6 by the NSCUDD when no meetings were being held anywhere and we were told that no one could meet at any of the centers because of the pandemic. People were probably unable or unwilling to go because of the health situation. Is that when you hold a meeting? They have had meetings before and will meet again on June 18. A great many people may not be here at that time and I may not be here either to give my opinion. It is my belief, that my opinion and everyone else’s, counts for very little in this matter. Even though there is to be a vote, they, like the commissioners concerning the rate increase on county taxes, will meet and greet and dismiss. They will go with the no recycling which they are already doing south of route 44. Are they landfilling or burning? Both glass and aluminum can be endlessly recycled, especially aluminum, which is a nonrenewable resource. I, for one, protest and will be saving my aluminum and cancelling my subscription to the newspaper, as they will no longer be recycling newsprint. Instead of finding ways to keep our planet clean, they will burn it all and we will have to suck it up, both literally and figuratively. Some education and changes would probably help this situation but I doubt any of that will be done. So they will ask for opinions and then ignore them, that is my guess. I doubt very much that this will be allowed to appear so I will save it and post elsewhere too. Going in the wrong direction!

So China doesn't take stuff, and recycle companies here are selective (what can they make money with). So your solution is?

[stan the man]

Typical ..we all know the problems. Sounds like politicians,, , now give reasonable solution

[merrymini]

Recycling can be very efficient if people are willing to clean and separate. In Europe the recycling rate is 90 percent, here it is about 33 percent. The Covanta option does not recycle anything and is the most expensive, so why would I do that? They can explore alternatives? Why not do that before taking a vote instead of after? How about one pick up a week for both trash and recycling? If you keep aluminum separate, it can be crushed taking up little room and still has a dollar value. Glass is still good for recycling but we may have to separate the colors so it can be crushed. All too much trouble? How about composting? It is estimated that about 20 percent of household waste is compostable. Has anyone contacted UF which has done comprehensive composting programs? Maybe we do not have a solution for everything but we should use the solutions for the things we have. Please contact NSCUDD and ask that more recycling solutions are made to be put on the table besides incinerating everything.