SEAL BEACH : Report Analyzes Recycling Program

City officials will unveil a report later this month that outlines ways of improving Seal Beach’s recycling program, which debuted four months ago to mixed reviews from residents.

The report is aimed at addressing some of the most frequent criticisms of the program: that extra containers cost too much and that the system does not adequately provide for the disposal of grass clippings and other forms of green waste.

About half of the households in Seal Beach currently participate in the recycling program, including residents of Marina Hill and College Park East.

The Old Town district was originally slated to join the program in July. But City Manager Jerry L. Bankston said the start-up date has been pushed back until the fall so that officials can further study how best to implement the program.

Bringing recycling to Old Town could be tricky because the area includes apartment houses, small duplexes and larger homes. Some residents share their trash cans with neighbors, Bankston said.

People who already participate in the recycling program have complained about the $8 fee charged to households that require more than two trash containers.

City officials discussed the issue with Briggeman Disposal Service, which runs the program, and Bankston said the fee could be reduced to $5.

The city has also fielded complaints from residents who said the program does not offer an effective way of discarding green waste from their back yards and gardens.

To solve this problem, the city might offer a curbside pickup for green waste several times a year or designate days when residents can drop off clippings to the Seal Beach corporation yard.

The city is required by state laws to create a recycling program that reduces its waste deposits to landfills by 25% by 1995.

Four months into the program, the city has reduced its landfill deposits by about 19%. Bankston said he expects landfill use to decrease further as more of the city join the program.