Lambertville’s single-stream recycling program won one of three awards presented in the Green and Sustainable category
By Linda Seida, Staff Writer
LAMBERTVILLE — The city’s new single-stream recycling program has been a hit with residents, and now it has been recognized as a winner by the Hunterdon County Planning Board’s Planning and Design Award Program.
The award given to Lambertville’s Recycling Committee was announced March 31 at the Holiday Inn Select in Clinton.
Lambertville’s single-stream recycling program won one of three awards presented in the Green and Sustainable category.
The category includes public or private projects that incorporate sustainable building and site design. It also includes projects that conserve or use energy, air or land resources consistent with sustainable growth principles and also includes other recognized “green” standards, including Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design principles.
”Receiving this award acknowledges Lambertville’s commitment toward becoming a ‘green and sustainable community,’ “ said Amy Wells, a member of the city’s Environmental Commission. “Piper Trelstad, chairwoman of the Lambertville Environmental Commission, submitted the nomination, and we are very proud to have been recognized for our achievements.”
Ms. Trelstad said in the application, “Lambertville’s new single-stream recycling program, designed by the Lambertville Recycling Committee, will fulfill a public demand for plastics and cardboard recycling while providing the city with much-needed cost savings and increasing recycling rates to help meet or exceed the New Jersey mandate for a 50 percent residential recycling rate. The program being implemented in Lambertville can be used as a model for recycling programs in other cities interested in increasing their recycling rates.”
Also, she wrote, the single-stream program allows the city “to reap the full financial benefits of lower solid waste disposal fees and income generated by selling the city’s recyclables.”
Ms. Trelstad and Ms. Wells represent the Environmental Commission on the city’s Recycling Committee. Other members of the committee include Public Works Director Paul Cronce and residents Charles Kaufmann and John and Beth O’Brien.
The city’s recycling program is one of the first in the county to be “single-stream,” that is, accepting all recyclables in one container. Residents do not have to sort plastics from cans, for example, making it more convenient.
The program also is one of the few that accepts all types of plastics.
Different types of plastics are identified by different numbers. The number is usually stamped or embossed on the bottom of an item and enclosed by a stamped or embossed triangle. Most other recycling programs accept numbers 1 and 2, but Lambertville’s program accepts much more, numbers 1 through 7.
”Our recycling program and Sparkle Week are often used as examples for other communities as they redesign existing programs in order to address solid waste and recycling issues,” Ms. Wells said.
Sparkle Week has returned after a one-year hiatus. Popular with residents, the program offers curbside collection of heavy household items, such as furniture and appliances. Also, each household may put out two tires. For the first time, the city has established a $35 fee for each household that wants to participate.
It took a while for the single-stream recycling program to become a reality. Residents had been asking for the ability to recycle plastics for a long time.
Two years ago, Mayor David Del Vecchio appointed the six-member Recycling Committee to investigate options. The committee had to start by prioritizing goals and identifying staffing and equipment constraints, Ms. Wells said. It also consulted with the staff of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Recycling as well as other municipalities. It went on to research several different options.
”After analyzing the environmental benefit, financial commitment and return of each option, it became apparent that the city would most benefit from the city operated, user-friendly, single-stream recycling program that we have today,” Ms. Wells said.
The single-stream program officially began in the fall of 2008. In addition to plastics, the city also began accepting cardboard for the first time.