Chicago officials say they’re hoping to expand the blue cart recycling program to the entire city by 2011. Recycling advocates say it’s a step forward, but also say there’s much more to be done.
The city’s moving away from its heavily criticized blue bag recycling program. Blue carts let people put their recyclables into a separate container from their garbage. The system’s supposedly more efficient, and in several wards now. Julie Dick with the Chicago Recycling Coalition says the blue cart roll-out is a positive move, but,
DICK: There’s a lot more that can happen within that program. There could be enforcement, there could be fines, there could be incentives for people to recycle, there can be much broader outreach and education.
Dick says another problem is the city doesn’t serve apartment buildings with more than four units or commercial buildings. Those two populations alone make up the majority of the city’s garbage stream. There is a law requiring those buildings to recycle, but Dick says it’s weakly enforced.