SEAL BEACH : Curbside Recycling Program Begins

The city entered the world of curbside recycling this week with generally positive results. City officials said Tuesday that collections of trash and recyclables during the first two days of the long-awaited recycling program occurred on time and with few problems.

But more than two dozen residents have complained to officials about the bulky size of the 100-gallon recycling bins that households must use to dispose of their trash and recyclables, according to council members. Residents said the 4-foot-tall bins are difficult to move and don’t fit through their side gates.

The College Park East and Marina Hill districts are the first sections of Seal Beach to begin the recycling programs. Homes in those areas were given two 100-gallon bins late last week--one for normal trash, the other for recyclables. About 10,000 people live in the two neighborhoods.

The bins are much larger than normal 50-gallon trash cans, and residents soon realized the containers were difficult to move and store.

“They don’t go through some of these narrow side gates, so some people have to leave the (bins) outside in the front,” said Councilman Frank Laszlo, who has received more than 10 complaints about the containers.

Senior citizens who live alone are especially concerned about the bins, which they said are hard to move and far too big for the amount of garbage generated by small households, Laszlo said.

City officials said residents can request to have their 100-gallon bins replaced with smaller 66-gallon models. But in most cases, it will take several weeks for the containers to be exchanged. There is also talk of eventually offering residents 33-gallon containers.

Forsythe said the recycling program has been warmly received by environmentally conscious residents who until now have had to take their bottles, cans and newspapers to a center at Cal State Long Beach for recycling.

The Old Town district will be added to the recycling program this summer. The gated communities of Leisure World and Surfside use private hauling services and will not be affected by the changes.

The city is contracting with Briggeman Disposal Services for the recycling service.