RECYCLE NORTH DAKOTA

FAQ

FREQUENTLY ASK QUESTIONS


  • How is my garbage collection changing with implementing residential recycling?

  • a. The City of Jamestown is replacing our current garbage program with a pay-as-you- throw program that includes residential recycling. Pay-as-you-throw is a program for waste collection in which households are charged a monthly fee according to the amount of waste they direct to the landfill.

    b. The pay-as-you-throw program also eliminates a monthly fee for bin rental if you currently rent your garbage bin.

    c. Residential recycling will now be included in your monthly garbage collection fee.

  • How much are residential garbage and recycling collections going to cost me?

  • a. The monthly fee will be billed to you by the City of Jamestown, just as the City currently bills you for residential garbage collection.

    b. The monthly fee INCLUDES your residential recycling AND garbage collection.

    c. Your monthly fee will depend upon the size of the garbage bin you choose for your weekly garbage collection. Garbage bin sizes and prices:

    i. Smallest size - 32 gallons, monthly fee $13.60 per month

    ii. Medium size - 64 gallons, monthly fee $15.70 per month

    iii. Largest size - 96 gallons, monthly fee $17.80 per month

    d. The monthly fee ALSO includes a 96 gallon residential recycling bin provided by the Jamestown Recycling Center.

    e. Residents will be allowed to change the size of their garbage bin once with no charge. A fee will be charged for any changes beyond that.

  • Is residential recycling mandatory, if so, do I still pay a fee?

  • a. Participation is not mandatory, however the more you recycle, the smaller the size of garbage bin you will need. You are encouraged to recycle as much as possible in order to save landfill costs.

    b. Your monthly fee for garbage and recycling collection is based on the size of the garbage bin you use - it will not change if you choose not to recycle.

    i. Smallest size - 32 gallons, monthly fee $13.60 per month

    ii. Medium size - 64 gallons, monthly fee $15.70 per month

    iii. Largest size - 96 gallons, monthly fee $17.80 per month

  • How often and where will my recycling materials and garbage be picked up?

  • a. Your recycling bin collection will be EVERY OTHER week, on the same day of the week as you current garbage collection. Please refer to the recycling collection calendar.

    b. Garbage collection will continue weekly on your current assigned day of the week. For collection days please contact the City of Jamestown.

    c. The recycling bin will be placed adjacent to, but at least 4 feet away from your garbage bin.

    d. You may be asked to change the location of where you place your garbage bin and recycling bin in order to facilitate the automated recycling and garbage trucks.

  • Will residential recycling also occur at apartment complexes?

  • a. Yes, larger recycling bins will be furnished to apartment complexes and will be picked up every week at the same location that the weekly garbage is now picked up.

    b. Approved recyclable materials should not be combined within any sort of box or bag with the exception of shredded paper (placed in a clear plastic sealed or tied bag).

    c. Place approved recyclable materials directly into your recycling bin. Please rinse out cans and plastic containers and remove caps.

    d. Sorting your items is not necessary as it will be sorted at the Jamestown Recycling Center. This is referred to as Single-Sort Recycling.

  • What items can be recycled?

  • a. Paper products, including newspaper & inserts, magazines, junk mail, brown paper bags, phone books, catalogs, office paper, etc. Staples, paper clips, and plastic windows in envelopes can be left on.

    b. All types of plastic containers with #1 - #7, caps removed and placed separately in bin

    c. Cardboard and food boxes

    d. Rinsed tin and steel cans, aluminum cans, clean aluminum foil, labels can be left on

    e. White plastic bags (may have colored printing on it)

    f. Shredded paper - that is sealed or tied in a clear plastic bag

  • What items CANNOT be placed in the residential recycling bins?

  • a. Any glass items and light bulbs

    b. Food-soiled cardboard

    c. Clear plastic wrap

    d. Waxed cardboard and paper

    e. Styro-foam of any type, even if it has a recycling symbol on it. In order to ship styro-foam, it first needs to be processed and the equipment required to do that processing is too expensive for the volume of material that we would be able to collect in Jamestown.

    f. Plastic bags that are any color other than white, such as grocery and garbage bags, or clear plastic bags (e.g. cereal bags, baggies - even if the bag has a recycling symbol on it, if it isn't white in color, then it can't be recycled in Jamestown)

    g. Diapers

    h. Food waste

    i. Packing peanuts

    j. Plastic Film

    k. Garden Hoses

  • May glass items be placed in the residential recycling bins?

  • a. No, glass items can NOT be placed in those bins BUT can be recycled at the Jamestown Recycling Center.

    b. The Jamestown Recycle Center will be open for you to drop off all recyclable materials not allowed in recycling bins as well as other recyclable items.

  • Why can't glass be placed in the residential recycling bins?

  • a. Because of the high risk of breakage, glass cannot be put into the recycling bin. Broken glass is a hazard to the center's employees that will be sorting the recycling materials.

  • Recyclable items NOT allowed in recycling bins, but ACCEPTED if brought to the Jamestown Recycling Center.

  • a. Glass

    b. Hard covered books

    c. Shoes

    d. Clothing items

  • How do I recycle?

  • a. Place approved recyclable materials directly into your recycling bin. Please rinse out plastic containers and cans. Plastic caps should be removed and placed separately in your recycling bin. Labels may be left on containers and cans. Sorting your items is not necessary as it will be sorted at the Jamestown Recycling Center. This is referred to as Single-Sort Recycling.

  • Can all approved recyclables be placed in just one residential recycling bin?

  • a. Yes, recyclables can be placed all together in your residential recycling bin and is referred to as Single-Sort or Single-Stream recycling.

    b. All recyclables must be placed inside the bin with the lid closed. Recyclables placed outside the bin will NOT be picked up.

  • Will the Jamestown Recycling Center still have the many sort-it-yourself boxes, or will there be just a few boxes - glass, plastics (i.e. will people who drop-off still have to sort all their materials, or will you just have one drop box and then a
    center employee will sort it)?

  • a. There will be individual boxes at the Jamestown Recycling Center for:

    i. Glass

    ii. Hard-cover books

    iii. Clothing and shoes

    b. All items brought to the drop off site, in addition to those listed above, will need to be placed in the appropriate labeled containers that are located at the drop off site.

  • Will the Jamestown Recycling Center continue to accept electronics at the drop-off location? What kind of items do you accept? If so, what is the fee charged?

  • a. Yes, the recycling center will continue to accept electronics at the drop-off location. This includes the following electronic items:

    i. Phones

    ii. Stereos

    iii.TVs

    iv. Computers

    b. A fee is charged based on the weight of the electronics dropped off.

    c. Batteries and florescent lights are accepted and can be dropped off.

    d. Fees charged for electronics, batteries, florescent lights, etc. change from time to time and will be detailed on a list at the recycling center and under the E-scrap page.

  • May yard waste and food products be placed in the residential recycling bins?

  • a. No, these items can NOT be placed in residential recycling bins BUT can be taken to the City Baler/Landfill facility for composting.

  • Why recycle?

  • a. The North Dakota Department of Health estimates that every North Dakotan generates 4.8 pounds of garbage every day, resulting in more than 557,000 tons of garbage every year.

    b. In the U.S., the average person throws away 600 times their weight in garbage during their lifetime.

    c. Approximate costs of opening a new landfill can cost up towards $5 Million. This doesn't included the cost to purchase the land, and the perpetual monitoring and testing of closed cells within the landfill.

    d. One recycled glass bottle would save enough energy to power a computer for 25 minutes. A modern glass bottle would take 4000 years or more to decompose - and even longer in a landfill.

    e. One recycled aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for three hours. It takes 80-100 years for an aluminum can to decompose (break down) in a landfill.

    f. One recycled plastic bottle would save enough energy to power a 60-watt light bulb for 3 hours. It can take up to 700 years for plastic to decompose (break down) in a landfill.

    g. Each ton of recycled paper can save 17 trees, 380 gallons of oil, three cubic yards of landfill space, 4,000 kilowatts of energy and 7,000 gallons of water!

    h. Recycling is good for the environment. It saves tons of raw materials which in turn saves time, energy, and expense.

    i. Recycling keeps tons of items out of landfills which are extremely expensive to construct and maintain.

  • For further questions regarding recycling, please contact Recycle North Dakota.

  • Click here to vist our contact page

  • For further questions regarding garbage, please contact the City of Jamestown.