As a Seattle based junk hauling company, it is ever so imperative to be a green steward of the land. People in
this area are well educated and understand that a lot of this material is
reusable and frown on adding to the waste stream. Given this knowledge we
strive to recycle more and more every year. This is not only good for the
environment, but also for our company image. Unfortunately we have found that
green recycling is not always cost effective.
When we are called
upon to haul away green recyclables (yard waste, wood debris, brush, dirt, rockery,
etc.), our goal is to be environmentally responsible. So, we take our customers
green waste to a recycling facility. This is where the recycling conundrum
begins.
Let’s take yard waste for example. At Raineer Wood Recyclers in
Covington or in Fall City you can recycle clean yard debris for $3/yard. That
is fantastic! The only problem is that these locations are not close to Seattle
or Bellevue. These cities are where the majority of the population resides.
This population generates the most amount of this type of debris and thus needs
to dispose of this waste on a more frequent basis. Logic follows that this is where we pick up most of our yard waste.
So, you may say, “go to a closer recycling facility.” Ok, so you
go over to Pacific Topsoils, which have great locations and easy access. The
only qualm that I have with them is that they charge over $20/yard to recycle
clean yard debris. This is far too much for a company like ours to pay! If you
compare taking this waste to Pacific Topsoils versus the Transfer Station you
will see the problem.
Our truck holds approximately 17 cubic yards and rarely goes over
the 2 ton mark, especially with yard waste. The charge at the transfer station
is $117.82/ton. If you do the math, 17 yards multiplied by $20 equals $340
versus 2 tons multiplied by $117.82 equals $235.64. It costs over $100 more per
truck load to recycle then to dispose at a transfer station, which goes to the
landfill…
If our prices are to remain competitive and reasonable to
customers we have to do what is most economically viable. Sometimes this causes
us to do what is not best for the environment, but what is best for our company
and stakeholders.
Our desire is to be 100% green, so we dispose at recycling facilities consistently, but we are just one junk hauling company in Seattle. There are people putting this type of debris into the transfer station every day. So how do we fix the problem? One solution is to make transfer stations that incorporate more recycling capabilities (example Shoreline Transfer Station). Another would be to start a recycling facility of our own. Both are lofty goals. Please post if you can think of ways to improve our green waste recycling conundrum. Thanks!
Matt W.
Matt W.
