Glass in recycling bins? Official word is ‘not yet’

At the end of March, the city of Seattle will increase the kinds of items that can be recycled and you will no longer have to separate glass from all your other recycling.
But lots of people have noticed that waste collectors (who are contractors) already have been dumping glass right into the main compartment of their trucks along with plastic, paper and everything else. So what gives? I spoke with a Seattle Public Utilities customer service representative this afternoon. He said they’re getting a ton of calls about this issue. He told me that even though they’re already using the new sorting technology to separate glass and other items, the official city position is “it would be a good idea to still separate it up until March 30.” However, the city won’t ding you for throwing your glass into your main recycling bin before March 30.
One more thing: waste collectors will be collecting your glass bins during the last weeks of March before the new rules kick in.
Here’s the scoop on all the new rules that kick in March 30:
Most households will get a new collection day. If you haven’t received a notice of your new collection day in the mail by March 23, call 206-684-3000.
Yard waste will be picked up weekly instead of bi-weekly, and you’ll finally be able to put meat, fish and dairy scraps into the yard waste cart. The city also will have two more sizes of yard waste carts to choose from, so you don’t have to have the one-size-fits-all 96-gallon behemoth that everyone has now if you don’t generate that much yard/food waste. A 13-gallon mini-can and a 32-gallon can are available. Click here for yard waste prices. Note that the city will automatically provide a 13-gallon mini-can to households that don’t already subscribe to yard/food waste service. But you can fill out an online form to order a larger can or to request an exemption if you compost at home.
You can recycle even more paper, plastic and metal items – including cups, deli trays, aluminum foil and plastic plant pots (even casual gardeners are rejoicing at that last one!)
Glass bottles and jars go in your recycling cart – no more separating.
Electronics, used motor oil and bulky items can be collected through special services.
New garbage rates take effect. For example: A single-family home with a 32-gallon can will pay $22.30/month for garbage service, compared to $17.65 in 2008. Click here for garbage rates for all sizes of cans.