About Recycling Action

Recycling Action is a Massachusetts-based project of Toxics Action Center. By increasing recycling and decreasing waste production, we will all live in safer and healthier communities. Guided by this belief, Recycling Action trains and assists residents to encourage government leaders and corporate officials to develop and implement policies to reduce the waste stream in our communities, reduce our reliance on harmful forms of disposal, clean up our streets, and save our natural resources.

Recycling Action provides information, technical assistance, and a network of experts so residents can fight waste in their own communities. We help residents implement numerous time-tested strategies to increase recycling, such as: pay-as-you-throw programs, community education programs, buy-recycled ordinances, and other model recycling initiatives.

Current Recycling Action Campaigns

Pay-as-you-throw
Massachusetts generates more than 15 billion pounds of trash each year, more than one ton per person! This amount has been increasing each year as manufacturers continue to generate disposable products and wasteful packaging. The implementation of “Pay-As-You-Throw” is one of the most effective ways of reducing the waste that is burned or buried.

Pay-as-you-throw (PAYT) is a system in which residents pay for each unit of waste discarded rather than paying a fixed fee per residential household. As residents pay directly for waste disposal services, they have a financial incentive to reduce their waste through recycling, composting and source reduction. For example, in 1993 Worcester, Massachusetts decreased waste costs by $1.2 million and increased recycling by 33% with the introduction of PAYT.

120 towns throughout the Commonwealth currently run PAYT programs. This year, we are targeting three towns – Somerville, Newton, and Melrose – to add to that list. Together, these towns comprise 3% of the state’s population and by instituting PAYT programs they would lead the way to waste reduction in Eastern Massachusetts.

Boston Recycling
Last Spring, Boston Mayor Menino promised to be a recycling champion. Menino hoped to highlight Boston as a model recycler by creating recycling containers in City Hall Plaza and the most trafficked city parks. Unfortunately, we have yet to see any progress. Additionally, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) pledged to add recycling to the most-trafficked subway stations. Some recycling bins have been added, but they are often overflowing and/or hard to find.

This year, Recycling Action will be working with Menino and the MBTA to fully implement recycling opportunities around City Hall, in Boston City Parks, and at heavily trafficked T stations.