ADVISORY/City Unveils New Collection Program With Delivery of Recycling Cart To North End Residents.

City Desks/Assignment Editors

ADVISORY...for Feb. 1

--(BUSINESS WIRE)

For more than a decade, Seattle has been a national leader in recycling. Nearly half of all of Seattle's household waste is now being recycled. Starting in April, Seattle's award-winning recycling program will kick off big changes. Based on citizen surveys and focus groups, Seattle Public Utilities has streamlined solid waste collection and added new materials for recycling.

Media Event/Photo-Opportunity: City Introduces New Program

On Tuesday, February 1st, Noon - 1 p.m., at the curbside of a local Seattle resident's home (125 North 49th Street), the City will begin delivery of wheeled recycling carts to residents who live north of the Ship Canal. The new carts will allow North End residents to combine all recyclables (except for glass) in one cart instead of separating them into several stacking bins. New carts will be delivered to all North End residents over the next two months, and collection will begin on April 3rd. South End residents already use carts for combined recycling. The new program will provide the same services to all residents citywide, increasing collection and processing efficiency.

&uot;This new program will allow us to live a little more lightly, and to use what we have more wisely,&uot; said Diana Gale, Seattle Public Utilities Director. &uot;Increased recycling will pay dividends for the region's environment and help create a more livable city for everyone.&uot;

In addition to combined recycling service citywide, the new program also features:

-- Same Day Collection: Starting in April, garbage, recycling and yard waste will all be collected on the same day of the week. Garbage will be collected weekly. Recycling and yard waste will be collected on the same day on alternating weeks--recycling one week, yard waste the next week. One-day service will be easier for residents to remember and will limit neighborhood collection traffic to just one day of the week.

-- More Recyclables: New materials, including milk cartons, plastic food tubs and plastic bags, will be accepted for recycling. (Please see list attached).

Recycling became a way of life in Seattle when City landfills were closed in the 1980's. When the City proposed incineration as a method for garbage disposal, citizens embraced recycling as a more acceptable alternative. Seattle's voluntary curbside recycling program that rolled out in 1988 was popular well beyond the City's expectations. Seattle became a national and international leader in recycling and waste prevention. Over the past ten years, more materials have been added for recycling and more markets have developed to accept the recyclables to remanufacture into recycled products.

Recycling not only reduces volumes of garbage heading to landfills, but according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency it: prevents the emission of many greenhouse gases and water pollutants, saves energy, supplies valuable raw materials in industry, creates jobs, stimulates the development of greener technologies, and conserves resources for future generations.

In addition to handling the city's garbage and recycling collection, SPU provides drinking water for 1.3 million people in Seattle and the nearby suburbs and manages the sewer systems. SPU also has engineering and customer relations divisions supporting public services,

For more information on the new collection program please visit www.cityofseattle.net/util or call Seattle Public Utilities at 206/ 684-3000. TDD call 206/233-7241.

Seattle Public Utilities

Fast Facts

On Our Recycling Practices

The Average Seattlelite....

-- The average person in Seattle generates 2.6 pounds of waste per day, totaling approximately 950 pounds of waste every year.

-- By far the greatest tonnage of recyclables still in the garbage are paper products -- newspaper, cardboard, and mixed paper, nearly 30,417 tons altogether. That represents 21 percent of the entire residential waste stream.

-- Seattlelites discard 741 tons of aluminum cans in one year. These cans could be sold on the market for $741,000.

-- Recent waste composition studies indicate there are more than 54,000 tons (that's 106 million pounds) of easily recyclable material left in the residential waste stream.

The Power of Recycling

Recycling one ton of paper saves:

- 17 trees

- 6,953 gallons of water

- 463 gallons of oil

- 3.06 cubic yards of landfill space

- 4,077 kilowatt hours of energy

- and prevents 587 pounds of air pollution

-- Recycling one glass bottle saves enough energy to light a 100-watt bulb for four hours.

Where Does It All Go?

-- Plastic bottles, tubs and bags are made into new bottles, fleece clothing, compost bins, carpet, lumber and garden hoses. Five two-liter PET bottles contain enough plastic to make one square foot of carpet.

-- It takes 80 to 100 years for an aluminum can to decompose, but a recycled aluminum can is back in the store as a new can in six weeks.

-- Newspapers and mixed paper recycled through Seattle's curbside program are made into tissue, paper, newsprint, chipboard for cereal boxes, phone books and apple trays.

Recycling - A Success Story

-- The average Seattle household recycles 70 pounds per month.

-- In Washington State, more people recycle than vote.

-- In 1988, Seattle residents recycled 27 percent of the waste stream. Today, Seattlelites recycle 50 percent of all waste, a rate that has almost doubled during the past ten years.

-- The average Seattlelite participating in the yard waste program composted 80 pounds of yard waste per month.

Recycling Creates Jobs

-- Recycling creates six times as many jobs as landfilling and incineration.

-- More than 16,000 Washington residents, 3,000 King County residents, are employed in recycling.

-- Between 1992 and 1994 Washington state manufacturers of recycled content products created over 2,200 jobs.

Waste Reduction is Even Better Than Recycling!

-- Reduce packaging by buying bulk and reusing bags and containers.

-- Use durable products like rechargeable batteries and refillable coffee mugs.

-- Use fax notes instead of cover sheets.

-- Make copies double sided instead of single.

For More Information Visit www.cityofseattle.net/util or call Seattle Public Utilities at 206/684-3000. TDD call: 206/233-7241.