Philly controller reviews recycling program.

Philadelphia's City Controller Jonathan Saidel has released a performance

review, conducted by his office, of the city's recycling program.

The report concludes that the city's recycling program was not in compliance with numerous provisions of the city's 1987 recycling ordinance and that Philadelphia is achieving a low diversion rate of around 6 percent, as opposed to the ordinance's original goal of 50 percent or the revised goal of between 35-40 percent set in 2000.

"In 1987, Philadelphia was the first city in the country to mandate recycling," Saidel says. "Unfortunately, since that time, the program has not been given the priority or resources it deserves. I hope this report will serve to help increase public awareness and active participation in the vital program," he adds.

Philadelphia is responsible for collecting solid waste and recyclables at residences of six units or less and at small businesses. Last year the city collected 699,000 tons of material and recycled only 44,000 tons.

Presently, only newspaper, office paper, glass containers and metal cans are required to be recycled in Philadelphia.

Saidel has set forth a series of recommendations aimed at improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the Recycling Program. These include:

* Evaluating the results of the pilot single-stream collection program and, if successful, expanding it to the rest of the city.

* Expanding the planned pilot incentive program, if it proves successful. Residents would receive a financial incentive, based on the weight of their recyclables.

* Requiring the city's recycling coordinator to make periodic progress reports to the Office of the Mayor, which needs to emphatically embrace and support the program.

* Considering the need to pursue changes in the recycling ordinance to make it more suitable and responsive to the current social and economic climate of Philadelphia.

* Increasing the scope of materials subject to mandatory recycling as it becomes economically feasible to do so.

* Introducing a comprehensive enforcement program.

* Introducing weekly recycling collection to targeted areas identified as potentially well suited to it.

* Evaluating the use of additional recycle processing sites.

* Issuing a quarterly recycling performance report.

"Each 1 percent improvement in the recycling diversion rate would result in approximately $540,000 for the city in annual savings," Saidel says. He adds that if Philadelphia implements his recommendations taxpayers could save as much as $17 million per year.