Eagle Waste explores recycling rewards program in Bessemer

BESSEMER - Jim Whittinghill, of Eagle Waste & Recycling, gave a presentation Monday night at the Bessemer City Council on a proposal of administering a rewards program for the community members who separate garbage and recycle.

Whittinghill said the rewards program was implemented in Tomahawk, Wis., through the company and the community is "extremely pleased" with the outcome.

Eagle Waste is also looking into starting the rewards program in Ashland.

"It's a win-win-win for everybody," Whittinghill said.

Under the plan, Eagle Waste would donate $1,040 every year to the Bessemer Chamber of Commerce. The city would then designate one city worker to go out in the neighborhoods once a week to check recycling bins placed on the curb, preferably before the Eagle trucks go out.

The city worker would then check to see that no garbage had been placed in the recycling bin.

"We're not saying they need to dump it out on the ground. They're not going to go through mail, they're just looking for a pop bottle that's in the trash that should be in the recycling," he said. "They're looking for a ham sandwich that was thrown out in the recycling container that should be in the trash."

If that randomly chosen resident did not contaminate garbage and recycling, he or she would be the weekly winner of the reward money.

Whittinghill said $20 per week would be awarded to one winner in the form of "Chamber Bucks" and could then be spent at any of the participating chamber of commerce member businesses, helping to support the local community. He believes implementing such a program will improve support for curbside trash and recycling and it reward people for something they most likely already do on a daily basis.

It will also promote responsibility for community members who may be mixing their garbage and recycling.

Whittinghill talked about the Tomahawk community using a sticker on bins that had cross-contamination, simply stating that resident's bin had been looked at as a possible winner for that week, but did not pass the quick inspection.

It is a simple way of making people aware of the program, as well as possible motivation to do according to better, Whittinghill. "Everybody wins for doing the right thing," he said.

A few concerns were raised by the council regarding the implementation of the rewards program and the general weekly pick-up.

Mayor Butch Semmerling asked Whittinghill about the reliability of the company when winter starts, considering not every road gets plowed right away in the morning. Whittinghill said workers in Ashland never missed a house or day last winter for pick-up and if the event arises of unplowed streets, the Eagle truck will begin later, after the roads have been plowed.

Council member Linda Nelson raised a concern about invasion of privacy in appointing a worker to go through people's trash bins. Whittinghill said the purpose of the program is not to dig through everyone's trash, but to make quick inspections of a recycling bin to confirm there is no cross-contamination.

Whittinghill said the Bessemer curbside waste and recycling program has been successful so far, even just a few months into it, and a rewards program would help in continuing that success.

The council put a rewards program on hold until the next meeting so it can hear feedback from the public.