A change in the recycling market means more expense to taxpayers if they dispose of plastic bags in recycling bins.
On Oct. 1 the county’s recycler, Millennium Recycling, will charge up to an additional $75 per ton if plastic bags are found among the other single-stream recyclable materials.
Typically, recyclers place recyclable materials inside a plastic bag and toss the bag and the materials in the recycling container.
For the county to avoid paying the surcharge, residents should empty the bags into the recycling containers and throw the plastic bags in the garbage.
An exception is the use of plastic bags to contain shredded paper for recycling.
County officials are currently renegotiating the five-year recycling contract with Ketterling Services, Luverne, who transports the materials to Millennium in Sioux Falls, to include payment of the surcharge if plastic bags are found in the recycling containers.
Ketterling transports recyclable materials from the Ketterling facility on South Cedar Street as well as from the eight recycling sheds located in the small cities outside of Luverne.
Current market conditions no longer make recycling plastic bags viable, according to Millennium Recycling Inc. President Shannon Dwire.
“Plastic bags and film have always been a problem in the recycling industry,” she said. “They wrap around equipment and get jammed in our screens, slowing down the entire process and making it very difficult to cut them loose. With no market, it no longer makes sense for us to collect them.”
Some grocery stores will accept plastic bags for recycling. But Millennium officials suggest using paper bags or bringing a reusable bag to stores.
“The average plastic bag is used for just 12 seconds,” said Marissa Begley, director of outreach and communications for Millennium. “By removing them from our recycling program, we hope people realize the overall negative impact they have on the environment in our increasingly throw-away society and avoid them altogether.”
A list of plastic bag drop-off locations is available at Millennium’s website, www.MillenniumRecycling.com/BYOB.