APARTMENT, CONDO PROGRAM ALL 'BLUE'.

Byline: RICK ORLOV

Staff Writer

After years of promises, Los Angeles officials rolled out a recycling program Monday for apartments and condominiums, one of the last major areas to be targeted to try to reduce the city's reliance on landfills.

"The City Council originally said this should be in effect in 2010 but when I was elected, we set a goal of 2008," Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said at a news conference in front of a 22-unit apartment in South Los Angeles. "We are a year early and this will help us meet our goal of recycling 70 percent of our trash."

Councilwoman Jan Perry, who represents the area, said the program will result in a "social revolution" of people who are willing to take the time to separate their trash for recycling.

Under the program, the 95-gallon blue bins will be provided in the city's 541,000 multiresidential buildings. They have been provided to residential homeowners for more than a decade.

More than 100,000 units have signed up for the program, and city officials said residents can request the bins for their building by calling 311 and asking for recycling information. Officials estimate it will take more than two years to have the bins in all city apartments.

One of the biggest obstacles to starting the program was finding the money to cover the $2 million a year to get up and running. In 2002, the city adopted a fee on private waste haulers, which has been set aside to cover the program.

rick.orlov(at)dailynews.com

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