Mayor of Houston, TX Annise Parker joined with Solid Waste Management Department Director, Harry Hayes, to announce that 54,000 new households in the Houston area will be the recipients of 96-gal recycling wheelie bins as part of a new community scheme, rewards-for-recycling by RecycleBank.
RecycleBank runs programmes across the US designed at helping jumpstart neighbourhood recycling in cities across the nation. The company rewards residents with points for every time they recycle. The more points a household earns is dependent upon how often that household recycles.
Points can be redeemed for items at retailers, grocery stores, chemists, and restaurants. Houston City Council agreed to partner with RecycleBank for the rewards programme in an effort to boost community efforts in recycling basic household products.
Part of the programme is allowing residents to mix recyclables by incorporating a single bin-system in which all recyclables are placed in one bin and the sorted by the city later. In January, the City council approved a budget to buy 54,000 new recycle carts which will be distributed to households around the Houston area.
Since the trial programme was run four months ago, the Houston area households have doubled their recycling efforts. In just four months time the area has collected 3.3 million pounds in recycling sending that much less waste to landfills. The success of the trial prompted the City council to expand the programme on a more permanent basis.
|
|
