A row of recycling carts Sanitary Disposal Inc. plans to use for its upcoming curbside recycling program in Hermiston, Ore.
Sanitary Disposal Inc.
Eastern Oregon’s largest city is preparing to introduce a curbside recycling program next year.
In a press release, the city of Hermiston announced that its City Council will consider adopting recycling fees in anticipation of launching the curbside program.
The move comes in response to the Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act, a 2021 law that standardized what could be recycled in Oregon and established packaging fees for certain items sold in the state. The law also required all cities with more than 4,000 people to offer curbside recycling services, a mandate the city is complying with, if not enthusiastically.
“Implementation of this radically new system has come with a bumpy rollout and a timeline rollercoaster as cities face meeting the deadlines of this new requirement amid supply-chain uncertainty, and cashflow questions,” assistant city manager Mark Morgan wrote in a report to the city council.
Hermiston city staff recommended a monthly $8 recycling fee for its customers. In exchange, Hermiston residents will receive a 95-gallon cart where they can recycle metal, cardboard, paper and plastic. Sanitary Disposal Inc., the city’s solid waste franchisee, will pick up recycling every other week.
Hermiston and other cities subject to the Recycling Modernization Act were supposed to begin curbside recycling by July 2025. But Oregon pushed out the deadline because of the “complexity of implementing a first of its kind system,” the press release states.
The law also caused the state to be sued in federal court in August. In its complaint, the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors alleged that the law is unconstitutional because it gives regulatory authority to a private entity, the nonprofit Circular Action Alliance, rather than a state agency.
While Hermiston expects to roll out its curbside program next year, it doesn’t have an exact start date. The city is waiting on Sanitary Disposal Inc. to acquire the equipment and staff needed to run the program. While the City Council could adopt the fee as soon as Monday, the city said it won’t go into effect until the recycling service starts.
