0 thoughts on “Sustainable San Marcos: Single Stream Recycling”

1. Thanks for posting a copy of our letter to the Mayor and Council Members here for greater public awareness of the issue. We encourage citizens to direct dialog with our elected leaders to let them know this issue of increasing recycling really is important to us.

2. could someone please direct this to the local post office? there currently is no recycle program there. chuck farber is the current manager there.

3. Please show up Monday to support this important initiative. The 1st reading is on Monday’s City Council meeting agenda. Yes, that’s correct, the City Council meeting is on Monday the 6th, not on a Tuesday, because Tuesday is the “Night Out Against Crime” in our city. Please sign up (to register for citizens comments) on Monday the 6th and then show up at City Hall on Monday evening to provide citizen comment in person to let the Mayor and City Council know you are in favor of this. If you can’t show up in person, then call or email to let them know you want to improve recycling in San Marcos and that you support this proposed ordinance.

4. How will this affect the recycling center we already have in place, Green Guy? How is the city of San Marcos working with this facility to make it better? Or will TDS displace Green Guy Recycling?

5. We have coordinated with Kyle Hahn (Green Guy Recycling) from the very beginning on this, and he is an amazing force for good! Kyle is a proponent of any effort to increase recycling. If anything, Single Stream Recycling will increase public awareness and participation in recycling overall, and more of the things TDS can’t pick up will hopefully be taken by citizens over to Green Guy, which should increase his business.

6. I appreciate the concern for the drop-off center. I want to assure everyone that I support single stream recycling and feel it is part of an overall package that makes recycling work best in San Marcos. There will still be many items that curbside recycling will be unable to accept like oil and filters, tires, appliances (esp. w/freon), electronics, batteries, printer cartridges, cell phones, styrofoam peanuts, scrap metals, etc. We will also be available for those times when you have a large quantity and don’t or can’t wait until the next pickup, i.e. after a party, X-mas, or Thanksgiving, or accidentally forgot to put your cart out, since pickups will only be every 2 weeks. My contract is expiring and is up for renewal and would appreciate support based on the previously explained needs. Let’s all work together to have COMPREHENSIVE recycling programs that make San Marcos a greener city.

7. I support any thing the city does to make recycling easier. There is a hazardous waste drop off day October 11 from 8–12. For people who are interested in learning about used grease as diesel fuel, go to dieselgreenfuels.com or google grease car.

8. Pingback: Sustainable San Marcos - more recycling : Newstreamz San Marcos

9. PLEASE NOTE the Household Hazardous Waste Collection event is October 18th not 11th.

10. The current proposal for single stream recycling compares very favorably to our neighbors down the street. Here is a copy of what I said to the Mayor and City Council during the Citizen Comment period this evening:

    “Hello, my name is Steve Harvey and I live in San Marcos. Dear honorable Mayor Narvaiz and City Council members, thank you for your commitment to improve and expand recycling in San Marcos. Earlier today, I dialoged with James Ballowe, the Assistant Public Works Director with the City of New Braunfels, and he provided to me some more detail on their current recycling program which I felt is helpful to your consideration of the proposed single stream recycling ordinance.

    New Braunfels services approximately 17,500 residential units. They charge their citizens $5.25 per month for recycling services. Our proposed additional $1.77 per month for single stream, on top of the $1.56 and $.59 monthly recycling charges, would mean San Marcos residents will pay “all things combined” $3.92 per month for total recycling services. This $3.92 compares very favorably with the $5.25 in New Braunfels, and even more so when you consider the fact that it is city employees operating city equipment in New Braunfels, which is an additional but indirect expense to their citizens.

    All residents in New Braunfels are provided an 18-gallon recycling bin. However, the City of New Braunfels began an automated pilot program 2 months ago. Approximately 3,300 residents were issued one 96-gallon recycling container (on wheels) serviced once per week. The city plans to study this program for 3-4 months. At the end of the pilot, staff will present its findings during a city council meeting.

    Please note well, the $5.25 charge every month to the citizens for recycling, already takes into account the money the City of New Braunfels receives for the recycled materials collected.

    The arrangements proposed in the ordinance before you this evening compare very favorably. Single stream recycling can dramatically increase our community participation in recycling, and I urge you to bring single stream to San Marcos as soon as possible.
    I have extra copies of this information available right here if you would each like a copy of these facts and figures this evening. Thank you very much!”

11. The ordinance for single stream recycling passed at the 3rd reading in the City Council Chambers this afternoon, November 2, 2008. Many thanks to everybody involved with helping bring this to life.

12. Yes, I meant to say November 3rd, and I realized that right as I pressed the “Submit Comment” button! The City Council met at 3pm this Monday afternoon rather than the normal 7pm Tuesday timeslot, and it was during the meeting this afternoon that it passed unanimously by the Mayor and all 6 City Council Members.