Winder to expand curbside recycling

Winder’s city government is considering a different recycling program and is asking the public to attend a March 7 meeting of the Winder City Council to hear a presentation on the topic.

“The mayor and council would like to know if the community would be interested in this program before making any long-term commitments,” states a press release issued Tuesday afternoon by city administrator Don Toms.

Under the program, 70-96 gallon carts on wheels would replace current 18-gallon recycling containers.

The city’s garbage provider, RepublicWaste, would provide roadside pickup of the containers.

“By increasing our recycling efforts we could in effect reduce the tonnage into the landfill, saving the City and residents money in the future,” Toms wrote.

However, for the program to be effective the public would have to expand its household recycling habits, he said.

To increase participation, the city also would participate in a “green rewards program” called Recyclebank that converts recycling weights into points that may be redeemed at the program’s website for discounts on products and services from national retailers, restaurants, pharmacies and grocery stores, the press release states.

For information on the points program, check www.recyclebank.com/rewards.

The council’s meeting is at 5:30 p.m. at the Winder Community Center.