NWA editorial: Convenience or responsibility?

Fayetteville trash, recycling plan a major decision

Why do fast-food joints thrive when we know those French fries and most of their other offerings fall short of anything one might consider healthy?

Why do the grocery stores sell jug after jug of tea when the same quality and quantity can be made at home at a lower cost?

What’s the point?

Fayetteville leaders next month will potentially determine what the future likes for trash disposal and recycling for decades to come, and it may affect others in the region.

Why do people order a product from an online store when they could find it at a local store, put their hands on it before buying and contribute to the success of a business that employs local people and contributes to the success of their community?

One reason: convenience.

Convenience is a constant theme of our 21st century lives, reinforced by technological advances (maybe that's the right word) that deliver devices allowing us to simply speak our commands: "Alexa, ask Uber to request a ride."

"OK, Google, set the thermostat to 72 degrees."

"Siri, show me directions to Kansas City."

City leaders in Fayetteville are in the midst of a discussion that will have far-reaching effects -- potentially even for its neighboring communities -- in the way trash that can be recycled will be processed in the future. And central to the discussion about these recyclable materials is the question of convenience and its impact on how the average resident responds.

Back in the fall, a group of consultants delivered recommendations for the city's Solid Waste Reduction, Diversion and Recycling Master Plan. The City Council is pondering what parts of that report they're willing to adopt as the city's blueprint for the future when it comes to handling the materials residents and businesses want to discard.

The 105-page report isn't convenient at all: It takes a dedicated reader to get through the analysis of current practices and the possibilities for the future. In all likelihood, few people beyond City Hall will take the time to soak it in. But few city services impact daily lives as much as the system government uses to dispose of the trash a city of 80,000 people can generate.

The city leaders have already set lofty goals for the way Fayetteville faces its waste: By 2025, the goal is to divert 80 percent of waste from disposal in landfills. That means a reduction of waste at the front end and alternatives to landfills for whatever waste is created. Recycling will be a huge part of that.

The way Fayetteville will recycle has become the most controversial part of the master plan proposal. The consultants suggest the most effective way to increase collection of recyclable materials is to convert to single-stream system in which all potentially recyclable materials are placed in a single cart, dumped into a single-compartment truck and hauled to a materials sorting facility.

That approach, they say, is critical to capturing recyclables from a part of Fayetteville that is largely unserved -- certainly underserved -- by the curbside-sort system in place today. That would be apartments, of which there are many in Fayetteville, and businesses.

Critics say single-stream is rife with problems, chief among them a higher contamination rate for materials collected. That can reduce the marketability for the materials. Those critics also say the proposal lets residents and business owners off the hook by emphasizing convenience rather than expecting them to take responsibility for reducing their own levels of consumption. Grooming responsible consumers through education is a better way to keep them engaged in solving a problem they're a part of creating, opponents of single-stream suggest.

And, of course, there's money involved. Northwest Arkansas doesn't have a materials recovery facility that would be central to any single-stream system. A miniature system to serve Fayetteville might cost in the neighborhood of $3.5 million, according to the consultants. But Fayetteville is more likely to pursue a regional facility by joining forces with other cities and private waste haulers that serve some of those cities. So Fayetteville's decision could ultimately lead to changes in the way people handle their recycling in other parts of the region.

A regional facility could cost more than $20 million. Maybe substantially more.

This is no small decision.

So, why all those questions about convenience? We're convinced Americans in general, Fayetteville's residents and businesses included, want convenience more than responsibility. Yes, that will frustrate the hard-core Ed Begley Jr. types to no end. A portion of trash customers will devote lots of time and energy to their goal of shrinking their disposed-of waste to minuscule proportions, but many will choose the most responsible option that's handy. They'll recycle, but they'll only go so far in changing their ways. The burden to create a convenient system that works for everyone will rest with the provider.

It's worth remembering, too, that the master plan proposal goes beyond recycling to more aggressive means of reducing Fayetteville's waste footprint. It involves food waste recovery and composting. It pushes for a robust education program. It promotes technical assistance for apartments and other businesses. And, if voluntary programs fall short, which they likely will with Fayetteville's aggressive goal, consultants say disposal bans and recycling mandates may be able to add a few percentage points to the diversion rate.

So what's it all mean? It means the City Council in February will have a major decision to make. Adoption of the master plan will set the course of the city -- and potentially influence the future of other communities in the region -- for many years to come. Residents and business owners who care about their options for the waste they generate and, ultimately, the rates they pay, will want to be engaged in the discussion.

A good way to do that, even if it's inconvenient, is to read the proposed master plan itself, available at http://www.fayetteville-ar.gov/1907/Recycling-Master-Plan.

Commentary on 01/18/2017

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