Forsyth, North Carolina, examines curbside recycling options

The Winston-Salem (North Carolina) Journal  reports Forsyth County officials are considering ways to continue residential curbside recycling for unincorporated areas after the contract with current service provider Waste Industries of Raleigh expires at the end of 2016.

In June 2016, Waste Industries told officials it would not opt for a two-year contract extension as low participation and commodities prices made the program financially unfeasible. 

Minor Barnette, director of Forsyth’s office of environmental assistance and protection, was asked by commissioners to examine possible alternatives, such as making recycling a mandatory part of the county’s optional trash collection service. This would likely reduce the price for recycling, the paper reports Barnette saying.

“I think it needs to be mandatory,” Commissioner Walter Marshall told the newspaper. “The only way out of it is to make it mandatory, like garbage. Otherwise we are not protecting the interest of the public.”

The county currently awards service contracts on a franchise basis, setting the terms and rate. Barnette will talk with the three companies that hold franchises for trash collection in the county to discuss rates for trash and recycling pickup, the article says.