May 5, 2008
Boston Restaurants Aren't Recycling
The Herald unleashed an expose of Boston restaurants who haven't been separating recyclables from the trash. In a time in when it's crystal clear that people need to at least try to be less wasteful, restaurants don't think they need to pitch in.
City Councilor Michael Ross wanted restaurants to recycle, but they fought him on it. This affects the mayor's attempts to "turn Beantown into Greentown" and bring in all those green-collar jobs:
Boston may tout itself as a green-friendly city, but environmental advocates say the Hub lags far behind other municipalities in policing food and drinking joints, which account for tens of thousands of tons annually in waste sent to landfills.
Here's a clue: Buy a few extra garbage pails and separate the stuff out. How hard is it if the rest of us manage to do it at home? It can be a real drag going through your trash and breaking down boxes, but Somerville and Cambridge restaurants can do it, so why not Boston? But it's not just the restaurants. The article also mentions that trash haulers aren't exactly helping. The CEO of the Massachusetts Restaurant Association asked, "Recycle? Recycle how? Who’s going to pick the stuff up? Boston presently lacks the insfrastructure to pick up, haul and recycle."
Is that bull? Or do Cambridge and Somerville really have Boston beat when it comes to recycling? Mayor Menino clearly has a lot of power, or at least Boston Magazine thinks so, and maybe he should put a little power toward this issue.
Image of a dump truck from CDC.gov.
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a good reason to drink draft beer, or mixed drinks... no bottle/can to throw out!
i feel like i have seen an increased number of newspaper recycling stations, particularly at T stops. if we have the infrastructure to support those, why not restaurant recycling?
We separate our garbage, but I don't think they pay much attention to what they take or where they put it. I follow the instructions for separating cardboard, but they take it with the trash. And few people look at the number on their plastics, so not all items in the bins are recyclable. I think there need to be efforts at educating the public on how to recycle and what can truly be recycled.
Many, many times I have seen the fellas from Waste Management (with the big green trucks) take the recycling bins (the large, wheeled versions) and dump their contents in with the rest of the refuse. I live in East Cambridge and used to see this practice once a week.
You separate your garbage and your recycling, and the contractor puts it all back together again!