Spring 2003 Edition       

Monitoring Recycling Center and The New Policy By Chris Neidenberg The borough should check who discards waste at the municipality's recycling center so it can crack down on any non-residents using it who drive up expenses, a resident urged. Don Oliver, addressing the council recently, said he has spent considerable time at the Saddle River Road site and observed numerous cars lining up to drop in the various bins. Oliver maintained that it is quite possible a good portion of those discarding the various items are not Fair Lawn residents who add to the taxpayers' solid waste costs. Oliver is with the Fair Lawn Homeowners Association. The council created a $25 per carload ticket for residents wishing to drop off recyclable construction debris. Up to now, they are able to do this for free, under the somewhat vague rule that they discard only "a small amount" of waste Recycling Coordinator Ron Lotterman has complained that the policy is quite expensive (roughly $40,000 in 2002) and should be replaced with a fee. He told the council previously that some residents have too liberally interpreted what "a small amount" is. Oliver, however, questioned whether the council's taking the simple step of requiring identification would help significantly lower overall recycling costs in turning away unauthorized persons. "Why not check their driver's licenses?" asked Oliver. "I wouldn't mind if someone checked my license." Oliver also questioned whether the center's location on the Glen Rock border attracts outsiders from the neighboring municipality. "There are quite a number of homes in Glen Rock closer to the recycling center than where I am," said the resident. Reached later, Lotterman said his department checks anyone looking to dispose construction debris, and "spot checks" persons wishing to discard "yard waste." In those two areas, he said, Fair Lawn must spend monies to have the materials hauled away. "We're not going to check people bringing materials that we make money on, such as paper," Lotterman added. "If someone from another town wants to use our site in dropping off items which generate revenue, we don't have a problem with that." At the same time, the coordinator said, outside unauthorized use does not seem to be a major problem - even with the center's closeness to Glen Rock. "If we find one person out of 200 who we've had to turn away, that's a lot," he said. Though he has not come across any unauthorized persons using the center, Councilman Vic Amato told Oliver he occasionally monitors usage of the facility.. "I wish I could get there more often," he said. The New Policy Effective April 1, 2003, the Recycling Division will start charging residents to drop-off Construction Materials at the Center. Residents will not be charged for dropping off recyclables and the twice yearly construction material collection at the curb will remain free as well. Residents dropping off construction materials at the center will be required to present a disposal ticket(s) for each trip to the center. Tickets will be on sale at the Recycling Office and the Tax Office for $25.00 each. The number of tickets needed will be determined by the type of vehicle used to drop-off construction materials. Ticket Schedule: passenger car = 1 ticket SUV, van or pick-up truck - 2 tickets trailers = 1 ticket in addition to towing vehicle Regulations: The program is available to Fair Lawn residents only. No businesses, contractors, commercial or rented vehicles permitted. Tickets are required for each trip. No splitting of tickets / loads. Tickets may not be reused and photocopies are not accepted. Lost or stolen tickets are the responsibility of the purchaser and will not be replaced by the Borough. Only construction materials are accepted in this program. NO household garbage, carpet, furniture, hazardous materials, recyclables, concrete, asphalt, brick, block, stone, rocks or dirt accepted. Drop-off is permissible when the Recycling Center is open and attended. For more information: 201-794-5366