JAY — The Jay Select Board voted Monday to begin limiting curbside collection of recyclables to Thursday, while the town will continue to collect trash Wednesday and Thursday.
The modified curbside collection schedule is to begin Dec. 11. It was going to begin Dec. 4, officials said, but with a possible storm this Wednesday and Thursday, it was not clear that notices could be distributed in time.
Recyclables and trash are now picked up Wednesday and Thursday, with part of the town collected each day.
The Recycling Committee, including Vice Chairman Tim DeMillo and Lee Ann Dalessandro of the Select Board, Public Works Director John Johnson and Town Manager Shiloh LaFreniere, met with a representative of Archie’s Inc. of Mexico, the town’s trash and recyclables contractor, to discuss the state’s proposed Stewardship Program for Packaging and recent concerns with curbside collection of recyclables.
The purpose of the state program is to reduce volume and toxicity, according to officials, and to increase the recyclability of packaging material.
Archie’s Inc. typically uses two trucks each day for collection of recyclables and trash, unless the divided truck is used, which has a separator in the back with one side for recyclables and the other side for trash.
Dalessandro said residents have complained that some recyclables are being put into the trash. The representative of Archie’s Inc., meanwhile, told the Recycling Committee that nonrecyclable items are placed sometimes into containers for recyclables, which ruins the whole load of recyclables. It then goes into the trash, Dalessandro said.
There have also been weeks when Archie’s Inc. has not had the staffing to run two trucks on the two days when Jay was scheduled to collect recyclables.
“Several residents have expressed frustration with their recycling being put in the trash during pickup,” LaFreniere wrote in an email to Select Board members.
To help alleviate residents’ concerns and be prepared for the tracking required as part of the state’s recycling program, it was proposed the town change its recycling pickup to Thursday, according to LaFreniere.
According to the notice that is to be hand-delivered to residents who have the Wednesday collection of trash and recyclables, any recyclables put out Wednesday will be put into the trash.
Material that is sorted properly, in accordance with information residents are to receive, and put out Thursday will be collected by the recycling truck.
Certain items are not accepted for recycling, including glass, plastic bags and plastics, other than items made of No. 2 plastic.
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