Alexandria's New Recycling Program Underway

Alexandria residents beginning this week are able to exchange their new recycling bins for a different size.

Available container sizes are 18, 35 and 64 gallons and the container exchange will take place on recycling collection day during December.

The city rolled out the new, blue recycling bins to about 19,000 customers throughout November.

Yon Lambert, deputy director of Transportation and Environmental Services for the city, said the rollout has gone fairly smoothly.

His department has about 300 requests pending for exchanges with about an even split as to requests for larger or smaller receptacles. Initially, single-family homes were given the largest, wheeled container, duplexes the 35-gallon size and smaller townhouses got a bin.

In 2009, about 29 percent of the city's residents who used its refuse services recycled, and that's one of the lowest rates in the area, Lambert noted.

The City of Falls Church boasts a 58 percent recycling rate and the City of Fairfax at about 50 percent, according to a report from Virginia's Department of Environmental Quality. Statewide, the average recycling rate is 38.6 percent.

It's a City of Alexandria goal to increase its rate to 32 percent by fiscal 2012.

"Part of purpose of rolling out larger containers is to help us get to that rate," Lambert said. "Other jurisdictions have seen an increase in recycling after introducing the larger containers."

Lambert said the older yellow bins are the property of the city and should remain with their property. However, he said it's appropriate for residents to donate their yellow bins to any local public school to aid in the school system's recycling efforts. He gave his two yellow bins to an Alexandria elementary school when he received a new, 64-gallon container.

To help offset costs for the initiative, the city imposed an additional $5 fee to each resident's solid waste user fee raising it to $336 per calendar year.

Lambert said the recycling program is especially important to the city because it actually makes money by recycling.

The city earns $30 per ton when it sells its recycled material. Conversely, disposing trash costs the city $83 per ton, according to Lambert.

To request a recycling container exchange, call the Solid Waste Division at 703-746-4410.

Additionally, the city offers special pick-up of refuse and recycling for elderly and handicapped residents who may not be able to place their containers at the curb. Residents can request the service by mailing the Backdoor Request Form (pdf) to the Solid Waste Division at 2900B Business Center Dr., Alexandria, VA 22314.