Portsmouth Considers Fining Non-recyclers

City officials are proposing a mandatory recycling program to benefit both the natural environment and the city budget. Required recycling is just one part of a new Solid Waste Ordinance presented to the City Council at a work session Monday evening.

The new ordinance also provides for on-demand bulky waste pick-up and establishes a drop-off center at the Public Works facility on Peverly Hill Road for recyclables, bulky waste and yard waste.

Portsmouth residents are recycling about 15 percent of their garbage, while the state average is approximately 19 percent. State officials have set a goal of 28 percent recycling.

"We’re not really helping the state," said Portsmouth solid waste coordinator Silke Psula. "We’re paying the contractor to roll by, whether we’re recycling one bottle or 20."

Psula assured council members that DPW personnel would not be "heavy-handed" in enforcing it, but mandatory recycling would give her some authority over businesses that trash a lot of items which could be recycled.

"If they don’t care," Psula said, "I don’t have a lot of teeth."

"Our goal is to educate," said City Manager John Bohenko. "For us to have it mandatory gives us a little more bite.

"Any fining power has to be used judiciously. We are going to use this very sparingly because we want this to be a positive program," he said. "If it becomes a problem week after week, then we may have to use something ..."

"Something a little stronger," said Sirrell, finishing Bohenko’s sentence.

City Councilor Brad Lown calculated the city could save about $20,000 per year by raising recycling levels to the current state average.

Psula said Public Works crews already examine the city’s garbage and remove whatever recyclables they can before shipping solid waste to Rochester.

"You’re recycling and you don’t even know it," she said.

The mandatory recycling service will apply to residents and businesses already on the trash pickup route. It does not apply to those in the central business district which has trash service on Monday evenings. DPW will only pickup cardboard and newspaper recyclables on that downtown route. – Portsmouth Herald