The Bins are Coming

by HILLARY CRAMER
Sun Correspondent
Archived October 2007 article

• Green Bin: Green waste includes grass, tree and hedge trimmings and Christmas trees (no ornaments or flocking).
• Blue Bin: Mixed recyclables include newspaper, corrugated cardboard, glass bottles and jars, aluminum cans, and plastic bottles. Remove lids. Labels are okay. No other paper, magazines, telephone books, glossy paper, cereal or tissue boxes are allowed. No other glass. No other plastic such as polystyrene foam, plastic tubes, plastic bags and plastic toys is permitted.

Collection days will remain the same as prior to the pilot program; but with the new system, the second refuse collection day of the week will switch to a recycling pickup day. For example, if your garbage pickup days are currently Monday and Thursday, the new system will pick up your grey bin of refuse on Monday, and one of your two recycling bins on Thursday, alternating weekly between the green and blue bins. For Hawaii Kai, recycling pickup will begin with the green bin. Townhomes, multi-family dwellings and homes serviced with a manual refuse collection system (not with the wheeled bins) will not be receiving the city's curbside recycling service at this time.

Lids must be closed and bins with protruding materials will not be collected. For households consistently needing more than one refuse or green waste pickup per week, residents can call the City Recycling Office at (808) 768-3200 to request additional bins. You may request up to two green bins at no charge. There will be a two-month grace period for residents to transition to the new collection system while still receiving refuse pickup twice weekly at no charge. Beginning January 7, 2008, Hawaii Kai will begin the once per week grey refuse bin collection. Households with large families can request a second grey bin, to place out two bins on their refuse day. There is no charge for these additional bins, however a household must be recycling to qualify.

Participation in recycling should significantly decrease the amount of a household's refuse. Kalama Valley resident, Alicia Hanta, regularly recycles and vouches that this is the case for her family. "I know I am a bit of an extreme example, but we only put our trash can out once every two weeks because we recycle, re-use, [and] reduce so much. We also try to buy things with minimal packaging which reduces our waste as well," shares Hanta. While this may seem extreme, the island's landfill and garbage situation, too, is extreme. Hanta advocates recycling, sharing, "Hawaii is so small with a finite amount of space. Think of all the non-biodegradable materials that go into the landfill each day that could be recycled. Not only will the plastics and glass and metals in the landfills be there for a thousand years, but many of those materials give off toxic chemicals as they breakdown, which can infect our water, ocean and wildlife." Hanta and others note cons of curbside recycling being the cost of pickup, the cost of fuel to ship materials, and the burning of fossil fuel and the resulting added pollution. However, she believes the pros far outweigh the cons.

So, come the end of October, consider the recycling options that will be coming to your curb. Are there empty water bottles in your pantry or newspapers piling up on your favorite chair? Beer cans left from a thirsty pau hana crowd? Toss 'em in the blue bin. And when you are hacking the hedge, chuck the clippings in the green bin. The curbside pilot is the way of today to invest in our island.