By Kelly Olsen Former Santa Monica Councilmember, Planning
Monday’s column by (Bill) Bauer (“City talks trash about garbage,” Oct. 22) raised two important issues facing Santa Monica. I think most people who read it were surprised to learn that the city has been achieving a trash “Diversion” or recycling rate in the range of 65 percent, year after year, by taking advantage of loopholes and credits which artificially inflate the rate by two and a half times, and that, in fact, only about 25 percent of the total amount of trash collected in Santa Monica is being recycled.
I was a member of the City Council when the city put in place measures to comply with Assembly Bill 939. As Mr. Bauer pointed out, the intent of this law, which was passed in 1989, was to make cities reduce the amount of trash going to the landfills by 25 percent by the year 1995, and 50 percent by 2000. This is an essential goal for a whole host of reasons.
The first and major step in reducing the amount of trash that goes to the landfills is by recycling. Printing on two-sided paper, reusing grocery bags and other “source reduction” methods are very important, but we still use new items that come in packaging. For good or for bad, our nation’s economy is based on consumerism. The good news is that more and more products are put in containers that are recyclable.
When I voted to put the programs in place, I did so with the intent of complying with the law and actually having Santa Monica’s trash recycled, and not take advantage of loopholes, credits and other creative accounting methods that actually cause the city to deposit more refuse in the landfills. I’m hoping that now that this information has come out, the Council will make certain that the numbers that are given to them and the community are an honest reflection of how much trash is really generated and how much is really recycled. Only then can the Council and community make an accurate assessment of where we are in complying with the law, and more importantly, what kind of actions need to be taken to truly call us responsible environmental stewards.
Mr. Bauer also pointed out that two of the companies that have put in bids to run the commercial collection, recycling and trash transfer operations for the city have reputations surrounded by political scandal, bad service and numerous environmental violations. I’m hoping that the Council will choose a company that has a clean environmental record, as well as a known record for excellent service and honest business practices.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 24, 2007. Read the original PDF.