Paying per pound for trash pickup encourages recycling.

You can talk all you want about the global benefits of reducing trash generation and increasing recycling amounts, but some people just won’t change what they do unless you really bring it home.  The best way to bring it home is by hitting folks in the pocketbook.  The state of Connecticut is encouraging municipalities to implement what they call SMART programs: Save Money and Reduce Trash programs.  They’re also called “pay-as-you-throw” programs.  One implementation, for example, is for residents of one town to weigh their waste with a platform scale and pay per pound.

You can see some other ideas at www.ct.gov.

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