UPDATE: The new County Expands Recycling Program

An additional 12,000 homes in Charleston County are part of the county's expanding single-stream recycling program.

Homes in Mount Pleasant and West Ashley, among others, will be included in the new pick-ups begining Monday. Roll carts are being delivered to neighborhoods that are included in the new single stream expansion.

As a pilot program recently showed, single stream recycling increases recycling participation and the amount of recyclable materials that residents set out at the curb, and improves operational efficiency for the County’s collections team.

In single stream recycling, residents can place all paper products (including cardboard) and all commingled containers (plastics, glass, aluminum and steel) together in a new, 95-gallon roll-cart. The County currently operates a dual stream recycling system whereby residents separate their recyclables into two bins, but this is changing for those entering the single stream recycling program.

“Single stream recycling makes it easier for residents to recycle more, which supports County Council’s 40 percent recycling goal,” said Charleston County Councilmember Anna Johnson, who chairs Council’s Recycling/Solid Waste Committee. “The change from using smaller curbside recycling bins to a larger roll cart, in addition to no longer needing to separate materials at the curb, makes it more convenient for residents to recycle even more than before.”

The County’s goal is to make single stream recycling available Countywide over the next 18 months:

• Phase I: In January 2011, the County launched an automated residential single stream recycling pilot, called “All-In-One,” which involved 4,600 homes throughout the County.
• Phase II: Based on the success of the pilot program, which showed higher participation rates and a significant increase in the amount of tons collected, the County expanded the program in October 2011 to include 6,000 additional homes.
• Phase III: The County is currently expanding the program again to include approximately 12,000 additional homes.

The County is expanding single stream recycling in neighborhoods located in Mount Pleasant, James Island, Johns Island, North Charleston, West Ashley and the Isle of Palms.

This week, residents of the neighborhoods selected for the expansion will receive their 95-gallon roll carts to begin using instead of the regular, smaller curbside bins. Charleston County recycling crews will begin to service the new carts on Monday, June 11, and collection days will remain the same.

Residents may either retain their smaller recycling bins for recycling stations around their home or place them at the curb for pick up during the first week their roll cart is serviced.