Govtslaves – by Daniel Beekman
The Seattle City Council passed a new ordinance Monday that could mean $1 fines for people who toss too many table scraps into the trash.
Under current Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) rules, people living in single-family homes are encouraged but not required to dispose of food waste and compostable paper products in compost bins.
Apartment buildings must have compost bins available, but residents of apartment buildings aren’t required to use them.
And businesses aren’t subject to any composting requirements.
Under the new rules, collectors can take a cursory look each time they dump trash into a garbage truck.
If they see compostable items make up 10 percent or more of the trash, they’ll enter the violation into a computer system their trucks already carry, and will leave a ticket on the garbage bin that says to expect a $1 fine on the next garbage bill.
Apartment buildings and businesses will be subject to the same 10 percent threshold but will get two warnings before they are fined. A third violation will result in a $50 fine. Dumpsters there will be checked by inspectors on a random basis.
Collectors will begin tagging garbage bins and Dumpsters with educational tickets starting Jan. 1 when they find violations. But fines won’t start until July 1.
SPU doesn’t expect to collect many fines, says Tim Croll, the agency’s solid-waste director.
The city outlawed recyclable items from the trash nine years ago, but SPU has collected less than $2,000 in fines since then, Croll says.
“The point isn’t to raise revenue,” he said. “We care more about reminding people to separate their materials.”
SPU asked the council to consider the new ordinance because the agency is falling short of its recycling and composting goals.
Seattle’s recycling rate for 2013 was 56 percent, a slight improvement over 2012 but not on pace to meet SPU’s goal of 60 percent for 2015.
“Our growth rate for recycling has stalled,” said Councilmember Sally Bagshaw, who sponsored the legislation.
“It’s surprising, but we still send 300,000 tons of garbage every year to a landfill in eastern Oregon. I think we can do a lot better than that,” Bagshaw said.
SPU estimates the new law will generate 38,000 tons in additional compost annually.
Collectors already check garbage bins at single-family homes for recyclable items.
When they find too many glass or plastic items, they leave the bins with a tag asking the resident to remove the items.
The council vote to pass the new composting measure was a unanimous 9-to-0. No public hearing was required.
Freakin’ PITIFUL!!!
How much per cubic meter of air do you think they’ll charge?
The illuminatti’s wet dream is to have all the subjects …rrrrrr… I mean people live in a 50 story apartment buildings. Your thermostat is regulated (so you don’t waste energy) you have to use poison mercury light bulbs, your water is regulated so if you use one gallon more than your allotment you’re charged $5.00 per gallon, your garbage is studied, you do everything in the 50 story apartment. You work, eat, shop, walk your dog (on floor 15 only please. And don’t forget to pick up your dogs potty or you’ll be fined). The illuminatti control all aspects of your life. This way it’s simple to put the blame on anything you do and be fined for it. I think that’s called Feudalism.
Amyway to get your money for another Tax. Stupid in stupid out
I live in the land of moochers, they get there food at zero cost to them, they don’t give a crap, they just want more subsidies…. I believe in feeding the poor with rice, dried beans, dried milk, ect… take away their subsidies and that’s when they will revolt. That is why uncle sam does it, to keep the masses at bay…. also that’s why that pie at the grocery store cost 7plus dollars, the whole fake economy is subsidized at the working poors expense…
Were I live the dumps are open at your own risk. You can enter them and were they dump take what you can recicle. Then they spread it and it is picked back threw. It is a specialty some take plastic others metal, others cloth and such. Drag it home and bale it and sell it. But we do not have welfare here as well. So it is a liveing to a few self employed here. But it keeps the dumps lasting far longer as all is double checked for recicle goods. Food very little goes to waste here. My wife goes threw all and saves bones and most all. Then adds to that. As she say’s Sunday is soup night like it or not! Monday is shopping day for fresh. She stocks the freezer for the week and all most all leftovers are put in the fridge for tomorow to eat or froze for Sunday soup night. America does like to waste food.