Waste Not : San Fernando’s Curbside Recyclable Pickup Called Promising

Throughout the northeast section of the small city of San Fernando, hundreds of bright yellow containers dotted neighborhood streets, reminiscent of Christo’s umbrellas in the Tejon Pass.

But rather than an artistic statement, these containers sat curbside as an environmental statement.

Monday was the first day of the Mission City’s recycling program designed to divert solid waste from dwindling landfill space.

City officials are hoping initially to collect 40 tons per month from the two-square-mile city’s 4,500 single-family households and multifamily complexes of four units or less.

Each household has been given a 20-gallon container to hold mixed recyclables, including newspapers, cardboard, plastics, glass and cans. The materials are picked up on the regular trash collection day for each area of the city.

Multifamily complexes larger than four units and commercial and industrial properties deal directly with private refuse firms for regular trash collection and have developed individual recycling programs, according to city officials.

Under the city’s five-year contract with Waste Management of Los Angeles to run the recycling program, the firm will keep any profits from the recyclable materials. This will keep costs down for the city, although residents have already seen an increase in their refuse bills from about $25 to about $30 every two months, according to Gabrielle Sanchez of the city’s public works department.

City officials hope to discourage scavengers by enforcing the city’s anti-scavenging law, which makes it a misdemeanor to take recyclable materials from residential trash containers left at the curb.

San Fernando’s program responds to a 1989 state law requiring every city to develop recycling and waste reduction programs that will divert 25% of the community’s solid waste from landfills by 1995, and 50% by the year 2000.

Based on the first day’s response, Bill Jones, program manager for Waste Management, said he is optimistic that the city will reach its 1995 goal by the end of this year.

“Nearly 70% of the households had their recyclable containers out today,” Jones said. “That’s an excellent response. One out of every three or four containers were at least half full.

“That kind of response, combined with a yard waste program that will start this summer, should get the city to its 25% goal by the end of 1992.”

Separate containers--these will be green--will be distributed in May for residents to deposit yard wastes such as grass clippings, leaves and dead branches.

Some residents expressed support for the program Monday.

“I think it’s very good,” said Enrique Salazar, as he picked up his empty yellow container from the curb before his home in the 1300 block of 8th Street. “It’s simple. I just keep the recyclable container next to the other trash cans, and I throw the empty milk containers and the empty soda 2-liter bottles into the yellow trash can.”

Vivian Montague, who was walking her dog in front of her home in the 1800 block of Knox Street, didn’t leave out her recyclable container on the curb Monday. She said she always recycles, but just didn’t have enough to fill the container this week.

“I’m even going to separate the cans from the plastics before I put them in the recyclable container,” she said.