What's Happening with Borough Recycling?

Welcome to You Ask ... Patch Answers, the column for Chathamites looking for solutions to community problems or issues.

One reader asked,

What's going on with recycling? No pickup on Feb. 2, I assume because of the weather. No pickup on Feb. 9. If you drive down Tallmadge Avenue this morning, you will see our street looks a bit trashy! Did the Borough change recycling contracts? It used to be dependable.

Chatham Borough did change recycling vendors effective Jan. 1, when Waste Management took over the picking up of the recycleables. Waste Management offers single stream recycling, which allows residents to throw all recycleable materials into the same container without sorting plastics or tying newspapers. All papers, newspapers, cardboards, plastics Nos. 1 through 7, magazines and aluminum and steel cans can be placed into a single bin.

Weather has affected the recycling pick-up in these winter months. Snow and ice have prevented the trucks from coming into town more than once on the scheduled pickup day.

Jim Rotundo, the municipal marketing representative for Waste Management, said the two consecutive Wednesdays where snow and ice fell (Jan. 26 and Feb. 2) caused problems for the trucks. "We did go back and follow up after the snow, but we're assuming that residents took [their recycling] back in."

When on last Wednesday the trucks came as scheduled, Rotundo said the drivers reported "an overabundance" of recycling, far more than one week's worth. "The hours my guys are working, they couldn't get it done," Rotundo said.

"We didn't count on so much being out after the snow. ... [Residents] must have had it stockpiled up. It was just overwhelming. That'll never happen again."

Borough Mayor Nelson Vaughan said that if it does happen again, he will ask Rotundo to come before the Borough Council and explain the delays.