1. Send a letter from the M.A. or Board explaining the problem and its financial cost to them. State clearly that if the situation doesn't improve, and quickly, the Board will have to increase maintenance fees to cover the extra cost to the corporation. Offset this harsh reality with an equally clear and concise summary of your building's trash and recycling policies, and appeal to their pride and self-interest by stating the Board is confident that such a drastic step won't be necessary.
2. Monitor the situation carefully and update residents on how well they're going and how much $ they have saved.
3. Make a point of talking about progress in a positive, upbeat way, and thank people when you see them for helping.
4. Repeat steps 2 & 3.

Educate your residents. Start with the material the city is providing. If there are kids, you can think of a children activity as well. This will make the parents sensitive. Send around leaflets to be given in all languages spoken in your building making sure the residents give it to the housekeepers as well

RFS - Our residents discarded trash improperly for a long time, but we've resolved the problem, at least most of it. There will always be people who won't follow guidelines.

We have a chute on each floor and a trash area on the 1st floor in the building service area. This is what we did:

- We hung NYC recycling posters by the chute on each floor.

- We gave all residents a magnetized recycling poster for their refrigerator (available from the Sanitation Dept).

- We hung a sign over each chute that says:
ALL RECYCLABLES MUST BE TAKEN TO THE 1ST FLOOR!
THE CHUTE IS FOR REGULAR GARBAGE ONLY!
ALL REGULAR GARBAGE MUST BE TIED TIGHTLY IN BAGS!

- We have bins on the 1st floor with the following:
1) A large sign on the wall that says:
ALL ITEMS MUST BE DISCARDED IN THE PROPER BINS
2) Signs on the wall above each bin that say:
GLASS/PLASTIC/METAL
CARDBOARD
NEWSPAPERS
ALL LOOSE PAPER
MAGAZINES/CATALOGS
REGULAR GARBAGE (2 or 3 bins for this)
3) A Sign on the wall that says:
LARGE CARDBOARD BOXES MUST BE FLATTENED
When our super accepts large box deliveries for residents, he writes the apt # in black marker on them.

(The bins for recyclables are bright blue and the bins for regular garbage are black.)

- We sent residents a memo that, among other things, says:
1) The coop is subject to violations for improper recycling from $100 to $300 per incident which all Shs pay for since they must be paid for from coop funds.
2) City inspectors visit buildings without notice and will fine individuals if they find names on improper discarded items (it's happened in our building).
3) The coop will fine residents $25 per incident if their names are found on improperly discarded items or if large cardboard boxes are not flattened. (That's why our super marks the apt number on boxes bec residents did not flatten them and tore off labels so they couldn't be identified.)

The memo stresses the need for proper disposal, courteously but firmly, and asks for everyone's cooperation.

RFS - If you don't have a building recycling/trash area, find a place to set one up. It will save your super a lot of time and effort. Residents have to be "trained." You don't want to create a police state, but convince them that guidelines are for everyone's benefit, and let them know you're serious. And if they don't follow recycling/trash rules, charge them the $25 fine. Keep cardboard box labels or markings for a while as proof of non-compliance. You only have to charge people the fine once or twice before they start shaping up. It's working for us.

RFS - A few things I forgot to mention. A Sanitation Dept officer can come to your building to look at your trash area and tell you how to improve it and recycle properly. They're even willing to attend a meeting and speak to your residents. The only problem is that it takes a long time to get an appointment with them.

Stress to residents how recycling is helping to save the environment. There are many websites with tips on recycling (bring a mug to the office instead of using styrofoam cups at the coffee machine...bring a cloth bag to the grocery store instead of using their plastic bags...use the reverse side of letters and other paper for scribbling notes, draft copy, shopping letters, etc.)

Send residents a memo. Even better, have a 1-hour meeting in your building about 8pm. Have enough seats for everyone and serve coffee & cake. Tell them interesting facts about waste/recycling (many websites for this too). For ex:

-- There's more plastic in the Pacific Ocean today than there is plankton/seaweed.
-- A paper bag cost 3 cents to make. A plastic bag costs 1 cent to make, but it costs 17 cents to dispose of.
-- 100 billion lbs of plastic are discarded in the US every year which will be in landfills for 500 to 1,000 years.
-- Give examples of what recyclables are made into: plastic bottles into ski jackets, skateboards, house paint...milk jugs into weatherproof patio furniture that looks like real wood...metal cans into eyeglass frames, carpeting. It's quite amazing what recyclables can be used for!

Get residents psyched up on recycling and their cooperation will be more forthcoming.

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You know, I've been noticing lately that more and more people are taking care of the environment. Many observe waste management. Some even specially order a service for garbage collection and recycling, if the utilities can not cope with this. But unfortunately, the environment is suffering every day and there is no end in sight. The planet would soon be cleared of garbage. https://www.rubbishwaste.co.uk/

The residents must be made aware of this problem. Have a meeting about recycling, send out a memo, provide enough clearly marked receptacles for recycling. Have inspections done. Fine floors if you have to but do something. Explain the impact on his response time to real situations. Threaten to raise the maintenance if resident refuse. In other words, GET THEIR ATTENTION!

Regretfully -- welcome to the real world. No matter how much we have tried, including several presentations by the Dept. of Sanitation to our residents, our Super and Porter still spend much of their time sorting garbage. We even attached a copy of the Dept.'s printed matter to our House Rules. Do you have the Dept. of Sanitation's recycling posters and other information posted prominently in your recycling area? You can get all kinds of literature from them, free for the asking.