MILWAUKEE — The City of Milwaukee is releasing more information as it prepares to ramp up its recycling program for residents.
We already knew that recycling pick-up will increase to every other week from spring through fall. We also knew over 18,000 lidded recycling carts will be distributed to residents - all thanks to a $649,000 grant from The Recycling Partnership.
TMJ4 first reported on the recycling update on April 22. Many residents we talked to express frustration over an often unreliable pick-up schedule - with one man saying he is forced to store recycling in the basement for "weeks and months at a time."
According to a statement from the city's Department of Public Works on Thursday, recycling pick-up will increase to every other week starting June 1, and will continue through November. Recycling pickup will slow down, however, during the winter months of December through March, to allow for the city's snow operations.
The grant from The Recycling Partnership will also be used to fund education and outreach regarding the schedule change.
Each residence within the bin-serviced area in the city will have a cart delivered with educational materials enclosed, according to DPW.
“Recycling makes sense in many ways. It reduces our landfill costs, generates some revenue, and, most importantly, it’s a better choice for the environment,” said Mayor Tom Barrett in the statement Thursday. “I appreciate the opportunity to grow recycling in Milwaukee, and I thank the partners who have made that possible.”
The City of Milwaukee currently recycles 50-million pounds of materials every year. With the new bins, and the new pick-up schedule, the city hopes an additional 10-million pounds will be kept out of landfills.
Over 180,000 households are served by Milwaukee's recycling program.
DPW said in Thursday's statement that The Recycling Partnership’s grant was supported in part by Dow, Rehrig Pacific, and the PepsiCo Foundation. Dow gave an additional resin donation that allowed the new bins to be purchased at a "95% cost savings," according to DPW.
Read DPW's statement below:
