CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — From the old, comes the new.
That’s the idea behind the recycling movement in Corpus Christi.
But even with the best of intentions, those who participate sometimes unintentionally create more problems than they solve.
David Lehfeldt, the City’s Director of Solid Waste Services, says, “Over the years, our contamination rate in our recycling program has been increasing steadily, and we've reached the point where about 42% of what people put in a recycle cart is actually trash.”
According to Lehfeldt, the problem goes beyond “No-Nos” like plastic bottles that still have the lids, food containers that still contain food, and grease stains covering the bottom of pizza boxes.
“What we experience are bags of leaves, piles of branches, garden hoses, great big blocks of Styrofoam.”
Lehfeldt also tells 3News that education programs alone simply haven’t worked to this point. So, in about a month, four inspectors will be hired to flip the lids on recycle bins and see what’s inside.
It’s a chance for one-on-one instruction.
"We will give them two chances to fix the problem,” says Lehfeldt. “The third chance, we will send a truck over to empty it as trash and charge a $25 special collection fee, and then if it happens a fourth time, we are looking at taking the recycle cart away for a minimum of six months.”
Also, remember, that while there are many things that you can put in your city-provided recycle bin, glass is not one of them – at least, not yet.
“One of our long-term plans is to buy a crusher that crushes the glass back into sand and then we will be able to use it as a sand substitute,” says Lehfeldt. “We can mix it in with our road base, we can mix it in our dirt roads, mix it with concrete -- whatever you use sand for, we could use it for that.”
Keep in mind that every city has different capabilities, and what is allowed in another place, may not be acceptable here.
Beyond the obvious, there is a pretty long list of things that can be recycled – including junk mail, food cans that are empty and even empty aerosol spray cans. Some things to keep out of the bin include Styrofoam and plastic bags – neither of which can be recycled with our system.
You can find a more complete list on the city’s website.
Also, Lehfeldt suggests downloading the app “Recycle Coach” and using it to determine what can or cannot be recycled.
Often-said, but true: If we all do our part, we all benefit.
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