The Citizens Campaign for the Environment has finished an exhaustive study on recycling on Long Island, releasing a report today that grades 12 towns and two cities from A to F on their recycling programs.
The town of Islip was the only municipality to receive an A signifying an outstanding municipal recycling program.
The towns of North Hempstead, Smithtown and Glen Cove each received F grades for unacceptable programs.
The report cards were assessed by assigning points for recycling programs including paper, newspaper, aluminum, cardboard, glass, plastics, household hazardous waste, CFLs, electronic waste and leaf and brush waste. The report also measured public education programs and incentives for schools and businesses to recycle.
The grade scale is as follows:
Grade A
(90-100%)
Outstanding municipal
recycling program
Grade B
(80-89%)
Good municipal recycling program
Grade C
(70-79%)
Deficient recycling program
Grade D
(60-69%)
Fails to meet minimum expectations
Grade F
(≤59%)
Unacceptable
The towns of Hempstead, East Hampton, Oyster Bay, Huntington and Brookhaven received B grades while Babylon and Southold received C’s and Long Beach, Southampton and Riverhead were awarded D grades.
Overall, 46 percent of the evaluated municipalities were rated “deficient” or lower with 21 percent failing completely.
“This report highlights the simple fact that we can do better,” Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Citizens Campaign, said in a statement. “Towns and cities have pushed off the importance of recycling, underestimated the benefits and have failed to implement comprehensive public education programs. Today we are calling on all towns/cities on Long Island to look at their recycling programs and make meaningful changes. Implement public education campaigns. Re-engage the residents, both new and old. We can and should be increasing our recycling rates on Long Island. Let’s start today.”
The Citizens’ report also states that recycling on Long Island peaked in 1997 and has been declining since. From 2002 to 2004, the amount of residential waste per person increased by 2.9 percent and Long Islanders recycled 27 percent less in 2004 than 2002.
Well, it’s no wonder! I have spent the last hour looking for some sort of list of what is recycled in Long Island so I can do my part in recycling. I have found no easy list (like the one that NYC has) which tells me what I can throw into my recyclable container. Maybe I’m looking in the wrong places (the search sent me here), but I still can’t find a simple list of recyclables for Nassau County.