Less trash adds up to more cash

Communities save because less trash is shipped to landfills, at a cost that can be close to $100 a ton. Residents in cities and towns with “pay as you throw’’ programs save because recycling is free but bags or stickers for trash cost money. The more they recycle, the fewer bags or stickers they have to buy.

The financial incentive, plus growing concern about the environment, has helped a number of communities south of Boston push their recycling programs into high gear.

Programs in Duxbury, Foxborough, Hingham, Mansfield, and Milton recycle more than 50 percent of residents’ disposed material, according to 2008 numbers from the state’s Department of Environmental Protection. The recycled material is a smorgasbord of refuse, ranging from paper and plastic to compost and hazardous waste.

Other communities fare less well. Freetown, Hull, Pembroke, Quincy, and Wareham recycle less than 15 percent of their disposables, according to the state.

Programs that work well tend to have several factors in common, say people in the field. These include a pay-as-you-throw incentive and “single-stream’’ recycling, in which recycled goods are not separated but are picked up in the same container, making it easier for residents. The municipalities successful in recycling have motivated residents and sometimes also a staff determined to promote greener practices.

Duxbury saw immediate gains when it switched to single-stream and pay-as-you-throw, said Peter Buttkus, director of its Department of Public Works. The town has cut its trash by nearly 200 tons a month - a significant saving, since trash costs nearly $100 a ton to transfer, he said.

“The residents of Duxbury are making this work,’’ Buttkus said. “We did our best to educate, but people here are very conscious about recycling and they want to do the right thing.’’

Hingham has pushed its rate over the past few years from the high 30 percent range to above 50, but the goal is to get it into the 60 to 70 percent range, said Randy Sylvester, the local superintendent of public works.

The town has a different system from Duxbury’s. Residents drive their trash and recyclables to a town drop-off, where they sort it out. A staff of six works to prevent recyclables from ending up in the trash.

To minimize problems, the town has adopted a “three strikes and you are out’’ program. Residents who put recyclables in the trash get a “friendly letter’’ about the rules, said Sylvester. More problems result in a suspension of trash privileges until the resident speaks with a member of the staff and signs a statement saying he or she understands the rules. A third infraction means suspension for a year.

The system works, he said. He has sent out hundreds of first letters over the past few years, a few dozen second letters, and never has had to resort to “strike three.’’

Despite the progress, though, advocates want more done to boost recycling across the region, and some have expressed frustration.

Claire Sullivan, executive director of the South Shore Recycling Cooperative, said communities and their residents can do better; she compared efforts to increase recycling with the campaign to end smoking.

“I would hope that throwing a piece of paper in the trash would be like lighting a cigarette in a restaurant,’’ she said. “We’re not where I would hope we would be right now.’’

The Department of Environmental Protection earlier this month reported a sharp uptick in the number of municipalities starting pay-as-you-throw programs. Ten adopted the program over the past year, bringing the total number statewide to 130.

Pay-as-you-throw programs reduce trash communitywide by about 25 percent on average, reported the agency.

But a number of communities are not recycling as much as hoped for by advocates. South of Boston, Pembroke, with a recycling rate of 11 percent, is among the worst, and some say the town’s trash pickup system has the effect of encouraging residents to leave out a lot of it while throwing up barriers toward recycling.

Pembroke Town Administrator Ed Thorne concedes that, when it comes to curbside pickup of trash, residents can leave out “the kitchen sink, literally.’’ But residents have to drive their recyclables to a station that is open only three days a week.

Residents now pay $240 a year for trash pickup. That fee is expected to increase, said Thorne, who wonders whether the hike would be enough to encourage residents to support single-stream recycling or some other initiative.

Elsewhere, Quincy’s recycling rate, while low at 14 percent, has improved since it adopted single-stream more than a year ago. Trash is down by more than 2,300 tons, said John J. Sullivan, the city’s manager of waste and recycling. Quincy has also made about $100,000 selling recyclables.

Hull has the lowest recycling rate in the area - 3 percent - but that is artificially low, said Joe Stigliani, director of the town’s Department of Public Works. There is no municipal trash or recycling pickup; instead, residents must use private companies, whose numbers were not reported. The town used to have a recycling center, whose numbers were included by the state, but the center closed because of budget cuts.

Freetown, which has curbside trash pickup, is considering curbside recycling. Jack Healey, the town administrator, agrees the town needs to increase its recycling, currently 12 percent.

“It’s a matter of money,’’ he said.

Matt Carroll can be reached at mcarroll@globe.com.