Palagano coordinating town’s recycling program

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — Bloomfield Municipal Clerk Louise Palagano has assumed the role of recycling coordinator for the township. She is assuming the duties from Department of Public Works employee Joseph Testa. The change occurred in July and she will continue as the municipal clerk.

In her Town Hall office recently, Palagano had a clear idea of what goals she would like to achieve: increase recycling tonnage, and educate Bloomfield school children about the need to recycle, and the laws governing it. In 1987, she said, there was a statewide mandate which made recycling required. One brand new regulation is that plastic bags can no longer be recycled. This means that recyclables can no longer be placed in plastic bags and set out for collection or stuffed in plastic bags and taken to the public recycling center. Going forward, blue recycling containers are now available to residents at the DPW for their recyclables. These containers may be filled with recyclables and put out for collection at curbside on regular collection days. The recycling center is open on Saturdays, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Electronics are also collected there. The recycling center is located at 230 Grove St.

In 1984, Palagano was a member of the township council that began the recycling committee. Part of her duties now will be to work with this committee, and the DPW, to promote paper shredding and electronic recycling events.

“You cannot have an event without real workers,” she said
In addition to its recycling center, Bloomfield has weekly, residential curbside pickups for recyclables. On alternate weeks, cardboard/paper or bottles/cans are collected. Palagano would like to increase residential recycling by 5 percent over the next year. In 2017, township residents recycled 17,922 tons of materials, including electronics.

“Recycling is based on the market,” she said. “And there’s a cost avoidance with garbage. What you recycle, you don’t throw out. That is an important reason to recycle.”

Years ago, she said, Bloomfield had a recycling inspector. Palagano thinks it would be a good idea to have one again in order to educate residents on a face-to-face basis. And if there are infractions, she would like to see residents receive warning notices.
“In the meantime, I would go out myself,” she said. “I like that sort of thing.”

The current vendor for garbage and recycling collections is Roselle. Palagano said she followed one of its trucks to see if recyclables were being picked up and, if it were in a plastic bag, watching to see if the material was removed from the bag.

Glass, laminated paper cartons, plastics 1, 2, and 5, aluminum and metal containers can be recycled together. The same is true for most paper and cardboard items. Books, with their covers removed, can be recycled. No. 4 plastic, used for Chinese takeout food, cannot be recycled. These containers go into the garbage.There are presently no penalties in Bloomfield for failing to recycle.

Palagano said it was important for her to personally promote recycling.
“I was amazed at how many people brought their recyclables to the depot at 230 Grove St.” she said. “It’s every Saturday, and also electronics on Saturday.”
But recycling is not her only aim.

“The council wants me to concentrate on litter, too,” she said. “It’s part of the Clean Communities Grant. It’s in the 2018 budget. It’s a $76,000 grant.”
She intends to promote recycling in Bloomfield schools.

“I want to talk to the students about it,” she said. “Maybe we’ll have some school projects and assemblies.”
One problem she pointed out about the schools was that they did not have containers large enough to handle all the recyclables the facility generates.
“There are a lot of supplies coming into the schools that are boxed,” she said. “Paper isn’t so much of an issue. It can be tied up. But bottles and plastics need the recycling containers. We’ll have to purchase larger containers for commingled plastic and glass.”

The money for these containers would come from Clean Communities grant. As for food that ordinarily goes into the garbage, Palagano thought the township council would become interested in that, too. She said she knew tenants wanted to recycle, and would, because she has spoken to them at the Grove Street recycling center and they know that she is the new recycling coordinator.

Bloomfield DPW Director Anthony Nesto, in a telephone interview earlier this week, said an apartment building that put its garbage and recycling at curbside will get it picked up for free by the township.

“But if the apartment doesn’t put it a curbside, they will have to get a container from Roselle and it will be picked by Roselle free of charge,” he said.
Businesses, Nesto said, have to pay to have its garbage and recycling privately hauled away.

Palagano said she intends to learn if tenants of the new development projects are recycling. “We’re encouraging everyone to be on board,” she said.

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