Less garbage pickup leads to more recycling in Kfar Vradim

After collecting 140 tons of garbage per month, the local authority collected 105 tons in June.

By EHUD ZION WALDOKS
garbage 88 (photo credit: Courtesy)
garbage 88
(photo credit: Courtesy)
To encourage residents to recycle, the Galilee town of Kfar Vradim has decided to reduce garbage collection from twice a week to once a week. The result? A 25% drop in total tons of garbage carted away during the first month of the project. The community is the first in the country to reduce garbage collecting, and the early results are promising. After collecting 140 tons of garbage per month, the local authority collected 105 tons in June. The project is a two-fold one: actively encourage residents to recycle more and give them incentive to recycle so that garbage does not pile up. Golan Yossifon, the local authority's spokesman, attributed the dramatic success to residents' willingness to take part in the initiative. "The residents really want to take part in the program and they are full partners in the program as well. Moreover, they don't want their garbage piling up, so they're more inclined to recycle in between garbage collections," he told The Jerusalem Post Thursday. Recyclable items such as plastic bottles, cartons and paper make up about 60% of the volume of garbage generally collected, according to the Kfar Vradim Local Council. Council Chairman Sivan Yehieli said his vision was to develop environmental and green building initiatives as part of the framework for developing the Galilee. "Preserving the environment is very developed in Kfar Vradim. We have a very good education system and people who care about the human and physical environment," he said, in a statement.