Starting Nov. 2, Providence residents will have to put their recycling bins on the curb — even if they are empty — or their trash will not be collected.
A centerpiece of Mayor David Cicilline's '83 "Green Up Providence" campaign, the policy aims to double the city's recycling rate by next August.
To work toward compliance with a state law requiring a 30 percent recycling rate by 2012, the campaign seeks to ensure that by 2010, 20 percent of the city's waste is recycled , said Associate Director of Environmental Services of the Department of Public Works Daisy Diaz '02.
Neighborhood representatives and nonprofit organizations worked with the city to come up with a cost-effective solution to increase recycling, Diaz said.
The "no bin, no barrel" policy offers "great results for minimal investment," she said.
At a press conference last month, Cicilline said the unprecedented campaign will "protect our environment and, at the same time, save taxpayer dollars."
By increasing recycling, fees at the state landfill could be reduced by as much as $300,000, Cicilline said.
Radio advertisements and mass mailings about the program, as well as neighborhood presentations and bin distribution, have helped to inform Providence residents of the change.
Though doubling the recycling rate may appear daunting, "I don't have any doubt that we will reach this ambitious goal," Cicilline said at the press conference. The campaign will help "make Providence one of the greenest and cleanest cities in the nation."
