our recycling is actually being recycled- unlike other locations

An article in the ATLANTIC indicated that China has stopped accepting recycling. I wrote to Westchester County officials -wondering if Greenburgh residents recyclables actually are getting recycled. Received this bit of good news from the county--all your recyclables are being recycled.

Thought you would be interested in reading the link to the Atlantic story and Westchester County governments response.

PAUL FEINER

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2019/03/china-has-stopped-accepting-our-trash/584131/

Vincent F. Kopicki, P.E.

Commissioner

Louis Vetrone

Deputy Commissioner

March 14, 2019

Hon. Paul Feiner, Supervisor

Town of Greenburgh

Office of the Supervisor

177 Hillside Ave.

Greenburgh, New York 10607

Dear Supervisor Feiner:

This correspondence is in response to your letter to Patricia O'Callaghan of the Westchester County Solid Waste Commission, dated March 6, 2019, wherein you requested that the County provide a response to an article about recycling that appeared recently in The Atlantic.

The article, entitled "Is This the End of Recycling?", cites many municipalities throughout the nation that have chosen to end or suspend their recycling programs in response to the recent recession in the recyclables market. Fortunately, Westchester County's Refuse Disposal District (RDD) incorporates a dual-stream recycling program and operates a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) equipped with state-of­ the-art sorting equipment that combine to produce a product that is very desirable on the recyclables market. As a result, the County continues to market all of its curbside recyclables.

For many years, China was the largest importer of recyclables. In late 2017, China enacted provisions of its National Sword Policy, which banned the import of certain recyclables and set contamination limits on other imported recyclables that are very difficult to meet. China's goal is to develop a system that takes advantage of recyclables generated from within its own borders. Other importers, such as Vietnam, have attempted to fill the void left by China's departure from the market. However, these countries have been overwhelmed by the influx of recyclables and have now begun setting their own strict contamination limits. The result has been a significant recession in the recyclables market.

The RDD is a dual-stream recycling jurisdiction, requiring residents to separate pulp recyclables (paper and cardboard) and commingled recyclables (glass, plastics and metals). Many municipalities outside of Westchester and across the country utilize single-stream recycling, which allows residents to combine all of their curbside recycling (pulp and commingled) in one container. Generally, single-stream recyclables have a higher level of contamination than dual-stream recyclables. Glass containers break and get embedded in the paper and cardboard, while residual liquid in beverage containers also contaminates and lowers the values of pulp recyclables. Since the onset of the recycling recession, many

Division of Solid Waste Wastewater Treatment

single-stream municipalities have experienced difficulty marketing their recyclables. Some of these jurisdictions located outside of New York State, several of which are cited in The Atlantic article have ended or suspended their recycling programs altogether.

Westchester County combines dual-stream recycling with a MRF that was recently retrofitted with optical sorters and automated paper screeners. As a result, the County processes clean, high-grade recyclables. Throughout the chaos in the recycling market, Westchester has continued to market and recycle all of the materials left at the curb by our residents.

I trust that this has addressed all of your concerns. Please feel free to contact me if you have any additional questions.

<image002.png>Regards,

Louis Vetrone

Deputy Commissioner