WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) – Watertown leaders like City Manager Ken Mix have been looking into a recycling system meant to cut down time residents spend sorting their recyclables.
It’s called single stream.
“The households would just throw all of their recyclables into one container. We would take it and throw it all together into one truck,” explains Mix.
Going from multi to single stream recycling is a topic of debate for city lawmakers.
One option being explored if that switch were to happen hinges on work from the Development Authority of the North County, or DANC.
“The Development Authority conducted a study to look at the feasibility of establishing a materials recovery facility, also known as a MRF, at the regional recycling transfer station in Harrisville,” said Laurie Marr, Director of Communications at the Development Authority of the North Country.
A MRF takes in recyclables, separates, and then sells them all in one location.
The recycling transfer station in Harrisville checks the first two boxes, but trucks the materials to Liverpool to be sold.
Results of a $23,000 study into bringing a MRF to the North Country has a DANC committee looking to recommend just the opposite.
“The three counties don’t generate enough volume of recyclable to make a MRF feasible,” said Marr.
The city has other ideas if it wants to switch to single stream, like teaming up with Fort Drum to build a new recycling transfer facility.
“If they’re going to do that and we have a desire for a transfer site, it may make sense for us to partner on that and save us both some cost,” said Mix.
As for DANC’s study, the governance committee will make its recommendation not to build a regional MRF to the full board later this month.
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