SNELLVILLE, Ga. — Gary Gross was catching up on a few weeks worth of recycling at the Snellville Recycling Center, dropping off glass bottles, plastics and other items.
"It shows they really are recycling," Gross said. "Sometimes you just throw things in the garbage and they don't recycle anything. They say they do, but do they really?"
Snellville Public Works director Craig Barton told 11Alive the recycling center processes about 250 tons of materials each year. He said it was first established in 1991 and moved to its current location in 2003. People from all over metro Atlanta come to dump materials like plastics, paper, scrap metal and appliances.
The city also offers curbside recycling service. Barton pointed out how residents have often filled up their recycling bins with trash bags, leaves and mulch, making the recyclables unusable and destined for the landfill.
He said Snellville is implementing a new program starting May 1 that will require a $144 annual subscription fee for curbside recycling pickup. The service had previously been free.
"The cost of recycling has risen mainly due to contamination and also where some of the recyclables have to go to be able to be recycled," Barton said. “If residents don’t wish to use the recycle program curbside, that’s where the recycle center comes in for the city, unlike some of the other neighboring cities doing the same program.”
Some residents complained about the affordability of the new service, and others said getting to the recycling center could be an issue.
Nearby Grayson runs a similar subscription-style recycling program, which has resulted in about 25-percent of residents opting in and recycling. Atlanta, meantime, charges an annual fee similar to Snellville for curbside recycling pickup. Decatur offers a "pay as you throw" system based on how many bags a resident buys and fills.
Other cities like Forest Park and Alpharetta bundle trash and recycling services for a fee.
Schelly Marlatt, executive director of Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful, said the new changes to Snellville's curbside service would likely not impact regular recyclers, but it may impact those who would not recycle otherwise. She hopes people find a way to repurpose their recyclables.
"Neighbors, maybe they could take turns gathering everybody’s recyclables and driving it to the center," Marlatt said. "We hope they can learn better about what is recyclable and what will become new materials and resources, that way they’ll learn better to recycle right, which will reduce contamination in the overall recycling industry.”
Those who do not want to pay for the new service in Snellville can still drop off recycling at the center for free. Gross said he didn't mind the added fee for curbside recycling service if it was for a worthy cause.
"You have a service, sometimes you have to pay for it," Gross said. "That's just how it is."