THE TRUTH BEHIND COUNTY PLASTIC RESTRICTIONS

A recent notice put out by Maui County, ("County to restrict plastic recycling items" - Maui News 1/15/03) stated that the county will restrict plastic recycling for businesses and condominiums because of high contamination compared to the County Drop Bins.

I think it is important to report that the real reason plastic is being restricted for businesses, condominiums and curbside recycling is because, in July of 2001, the County changed contractors for their Drop Bin program and the new contractor cannot handle the volume. All anyone has to do is go to the Central Maui Base yard, off Mokulele, to see the mountain of plastic that has been piling up for the past 18 months. This is very unfortunate because the previous contractor, Aloha Plastic, was able to handle the volume.

The notice also stated that plastic will still be "accepted" at the County Drop Bins because they "have a much lower rate of contamination." However, in a meeting involving plastic haulers and processors late last year, the County's contractor stated that they were unable to collect enough of the recyclable PET (soda & water bottles) and grocery store bags fast enough to ship them off island for recycling before they were degraded by the sun and weather. This included both commercial plastic and plastic collected in the Drop Bins.

I think it is time the citizens of Maui hold the County accountable for the materials that are "accepted" at the Drop Bins. Are they being recycled? Or are they just being stockpiled for later landfilling?

Shaun Stenshol