<html><head></head><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:garamond, new york, times, serif;font-size:14px"><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3476">This is interesting info from the Bozeman equivalent of this listserv...</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3478"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3479"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2515" class="">Dear Bozone Community,</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2595" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2522" class="">I’d
like to introduce myself as the new Outreach Educator for the Gallatin
Solid Waste Management District (GSWMD) and address some concerns
regarding the new changes being made to recycling collection throughout
the county. <u class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2521">Basically,
we have switched from accepting Plastics #1-7 to only Plastics #1 & #2</u>.
Please read more below to learn why this decision was made and our
current options for reducing plastic waste. If you have any questions or
concerns, please feel free to call or email
me at 406.582.2493 and <a class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2523" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="mailto:Robert.Pudner@gallatin.mt.gov">Robert.Pudner@gallatin.mt.gov</a><br class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3410">
<br class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3412">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2524" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3415" class="">Thank you,</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2525" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2592" class=""><b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3419"><span class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3421" style="color:#365F91;">Rob Pudner, </span></b>Outreach Educator
<b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3423"><span class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3425" style="color:#365F91;"></span></b></div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2526" class="">Gallatin Solid Waste Management District</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2527" class="">P.O. Box 461</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2593" class="">Three Forks, MT 59752</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2528" class="">406.582.2493</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2529" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2531" class=""> <b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3434">Overview of the program</b>:</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2532" class="">For
many years we’ve been accepting plastics #1-7, paper, cardboard, and
aluminum/steel cans at all 17 county recycling drop-off sites. These
sites offer free recycling collection, subsidized by our local landfill
tipping fees. The county
pays a contractor to accept these materials and manage them (sorting,
baling, shipping to market). We face a variety of challenges in this
region, including our distance to market and low volume of materials due
to our small population, but we’ve worked hard
to strengthen the program and divert as much material from the landfill
as we can. Overall, we have grown the program and increased our
diversion rate every year.</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3437" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3439" class=""><b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3441">Changes in the market</b>:</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2533" class="">Most
plastics are shipped to mills overseas where there is a market for
these materials. However, recent changes to import regulations in these
countries have destroyed the demand for plastics #3-7 from the US. There
is currently no outlet
for these materials and there hasn’t been for quite some time. We’ve
been accepting #3-7 with the hope that the market would provide an
outlet in the future, but we’ve reached a point where it just isn’t
going to happen in the near future.
</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3444" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3446" class=""><b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3448">What is happening to #3-7?</b></div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2534" class="">These
plastics have been landfilled due to the lack of a market outlet.
Whether we put them in our own landfill or ship them to a sorting
facility on the coast, they end up as trash. We’ve been shipping bales
of combined #1-7 plastics to
the coast where they were sorted, #3-7 was landfilled, and #1 & #2
were sent to market overseas. This reduced the value of our plastics to
the point where shipping expenses outweighed any money received for the
material.
</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2546" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2553" class=""><b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2552">Reducing our carbon footprint & saving money</b>:</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2547" class="">We’ve
decided it is more responsible to dispose of plastic #3-7 in our own
local landfill rather than use fossil fuels and county money to ship
this waste only to be buried in someone else’s landfill. If it is going
in the trash anyway,
why ship it hundreds of miles first? Additionally, a more uniform bale
of #1 or #2 plastic will see an increase in value of approximately $100
or more per ton. Historically, we’ve recycled around 240 tons of #1
& #2 each year, so there will be an increase
in value to our recycling system of $24,000 each year. This increased
financial value is not the only factor in our decision for the change,
but it will certainly contribute to the viability of our recycling
program.</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2548" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2551" class=""><b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2569">How much extra space in the landfill will #3-7 use?</b></div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2549" class="">Not
much. Historically, we’re collecting only 300 tons of #1-7 plastic
throughout the county in an entire year. Approximately 80% of that is #1
 and 20% is #3-7. The amount of plastic waste we expect to add
to the landfill is equal to
60 tons, or <u class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2550">20% of what we typically receive as trash at the landfill in one November day, spread throughout an entire year</u>.
At the same rate, we’ll add only 600 tons over the course of the next
10 years. This is equal to the amount of trash landfilled
on one busy summer day.</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2591" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2570" class=""><b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2594">Are other cities/states recycling #3-7?</b></div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2571" class="">Not
likely. This is not just a Gallatin County or Montana issue – it is an
issue resulting from other nations’ import policies and markets.
Everyone we’ve talked to in other states is facing the same problem and
domestic mills just haven’t
adjusted to accept this material. These plastics are bound for the
landfill no matter how much we don’t want to bury them (and believe me,
we don’t like burying plastic).
<br class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3464">
<br class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_3466">
<b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2584">What about single stream programs?</b></div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2572" class="">There
are several single stream or all-in-one curbside collection programs
that will not be affected by this change. Materials from these curbside
bins are baled together and sent to large processors as-is and sorted
upon arrival. Plastics
#3-7 received through these programs are then managed as trash.</div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2583" class=""> </div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2582" class=""><b class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2581">What can we do to bury less plastic?</b></div>
<div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1448052146904_2577" class="">There’s
a lot we can do. We can make purchasing decisions that bring less
plastic packaging home from the store: Buy in bulk, choose
recyclable/reusable packaging, buy larger size containers to reduce the
packaging to product ratio, avoid
single-use containers, wash & reuse whenever possible. If
recyclable options are not available, tell the store manager that you
would prefer products with more responsible packaging options.
</div>
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