To the Editor:

“Let The Citizens Have a Voice in Curbside Recycling” for illuminating the issues of the Town’s consideration for eliminating this vital service from their budget. Trouble is, the cost doesn’t go away, it just transfers to the 60%+ users (unlike the 40% users the Town claims) and the waste management haulers and probably at significantly higher costs.

It’s conceivable that many of the current users, seniors especially, are not going to take their recycle items to the transfer station but instead will include them in their garbage. It’s also conceivable that the waste haulers will a) have to add more trucks to accommodate this increase and b) have to spend more time in separating recycle items from regular garbage. (Who do you suppose absorbs this cost?)

The main point is that Recycling is an important environmental issue for all of us and to do anything to decrease its effectiveness is a serious disservice. Eliminating curbside recycling pickup is not the answer.

Perhaps the Town ought to be looking for other ways to improve this service — like requiring users to separate their glass from their garbage (a significant savings no doubt).

It seems very shortsighted for the Town to just consider dropping this vital service without considering all the possible consequences.

Like Fred Prendergast suggested, “Let the Citizens Have a Voice In Curcside Recycling”.

Walter Stark

Newtown