Recycling changes to impact customers in Pierce County

PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. — People in Pierce County will see a change in how they recycle after policies were changed.

The changes come after rules were strictly altered in China, where most of the county's recyclables are sold.

The country is no longer purchasing paper and plastic recyclables and has low to no tolerance for dirty or improperly sorted items.

And because of the changes overseas, the county said it will clean up its recycling system.

Some of the items that will not be accepted in recycling are shredded paper, milk and juice cartons and plastic pots for plants.

Although the county is making changes, it does not include Tacoma's recycling system, which also is expected to adopt new changes if approved by the Tacoma City Council.

Curbside pickup will remain, but it will be limited.

After city leaders received feedback from the public, some of the changes proposed are:

• Maintain residential curbside commingled recycling service, with minor adjustments to the list (removing shredded paper and plastic bags from the list)
• Stop curbside glass collection and provide satellite recycle centers and/or satellite glass drop-off boxes
• Add a $3.40 surcharge per customer per month to cover the increased costs of recycling and provide resources for improved customer recycling education

Officials said those proposed options will only affect residential customers and not commercial customers.

The proposed recommendations are expected to be presented at a City Council study session on June 11 before a final resolution is made formal.

As for the county, officials said it is facing increased costs because its recyclables are now going to remanufacturing operations in the U.S. and Canada.

Cox Media Group