Single-stream produces gains for Minneapolis
City sees a 63% increase in recycling; entire city to move to system in April
- March 21, 2013
- By Kerri Jansen
The city of Minneapolis has seen a surge in recycling after four collection routes switched to one-sort or single-stream recycling near the end of last year.
Following the lead of other single-stream converts like Ann Arbor, Mich., and Portland, Ore., Minnesota's largest city rolled out the first phase of a single-stream system to about 33,000 residential customers. In the first six weeks of the program, recycling tonnage for those areas increased more than 60% over the same period last year.
Minneapolis' recycling rate has been stagnant at about 17% to 18% for many years, said David Herberholz, director of Solid Waste & Recycling for the city. For comparison, the recycling rate for the whole state was about 45% in 2011, according to information from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. The switch is part of the city's effort to double its recycling rate to 35% by 2015.
"We knew with the evolution of recycling that we had an outdated program," Herberholz said.
The city's existing source-separated recycling system required residents to sort different materials into individual paper bags for collection. Multi-compartment collection trucks towed a trailer to accommodate the different types of recyclables, a disadvantage in the city's many narrow alleys and tight turns.
Before launching the single-stream program, the city also considered a dual-sort system and commissioned a study comparing the costs and benefits of various programs. Single-stream recycling was found to be the most cost-effective, Herberholz said.
The study estimated citywide dual-stream collection would increase the recycling rate to 25%, while a single-stream system would boost the rate to 32%.
The city began rolling out the new system along four collection routes in November 2012, ultimately covering about 30% of the city. Residents received new 95-gallon carts in which to toss their recyclables, to be collected by a new fleet of rear-loaders. Routes chosen for the first phase of the program were among the most difficult to navigate for the former collection vehicles, Herberholz said.
"The idea was to look at our difficult routes and roll the one-sort out in those programs, so get rid of our multi-sort trucks and put in our new collection vehicles," he said.
For the six weeks from the beginning of December 2012 into January 2013, recycling tonnage along those four routes increased 63% over the same period last year, a difference of about 396 tons, according to a city study.
Last year the city also added aseptic containers and more types of plastics to its recycling program, which likely contributed to those results.
Implementing the new program cost the city about $9 million, Herberholz estimated. That includes just under $7 million for new 95-gallon rolling carts and $2.5 million for the new trucks. There was no additional cost to residents.
Single-stream collection allows more stops to be serviced per route, and is less strenuous for workers because they don't have to pick up and toss multiple bags of recyclables at each stop, Herberholz said. The new collection vehicles are operated by two sanitation workers instead of only one previously.
There was some concern that single-stream collection would increase contamination at the city's contracted sorting facilities, reducing the percentage of material recovered. City officials moved forward with the plan after a city-commissioned study predicted no loss of value with single-stream collection, and found most of the sorting facilities were equipped to handle the change.
Minneapolis residents are reportedly excited for the change, which makes recycling almost as easy as using a garbage bin.
"The feeling we got was it was long overdue, it was very welcomed," Herberholz said. "I think the only flak I received was from people that didn't get the roll-out in the fall that are going to have to wait for the spring."
Starting April 22, Earth Day, the city will begin expanding the single-stream program to the rest of Minneapolis, about 80,000 more collection points. Herberholz said he expects the program to be in full effect by the end ofJune.
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