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Columbus announces new curbside recycling service
The Franklin County landfill will see fewer visits in 2013 as the city of Columbus unrolls its new recycling initiative. The program, called RecyColumbus, will be introduced citywide over the next nine months. The program will be financed through the general fund, costing the city $5.8 million for a one year contract with Rumpke of Ohio, Inc. Rumpke, the largest residential recycler in Ohio, already collects yard waste for the city. This contract will also allow Rumpke to hire 60 more employees. More than 50,000 residences on the Westside, and part of the northwest, will be first to receive 64-gallon carts between April 16 and May 19. The carts will come at no cost to residents. Recycling for the first phase of residents will start June 4. Carts will be collected every other week, with yard waste being hauled away on the off weeks. Until then, residents are asked to handle their waste as they normally do. Those who do not wish to participate in the RecyColumbus may opt out after 60 days of service. Mayor Michael Coleman said this initiative would save millions of dollars in landfill fees. It is expected around 227,000 homes will be recycling by February of next year. This represents a step toward prolonging the life of the county landfill by reducing the waste stream, Councilman Andrew Ginther said.
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