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State and Local Government Resources

Web Sites | Online Publications

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Web Sites

Pay-As-You Throw (PAYT) Programs
EPA explains Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) programs, through which residents pay a variable rate depending on the amount of waste disposal service used. This Web site provides information on a state-by-state basis, articles and resources on PAYT, as well as links and contact information to get further guidance on setting up such a program.

Wastes Site - Where You Live
These pages offer a complete list of EPA Regional and State Environmental Agency web sites.

Source Reduction Forum
This NRC Web site provides local governments with information on how to implement a source reduction program.

Bottle Bill Resource Guide
This Web site, sponsored by the Container Recycling Institute (CRI), discusses what bottle bills are, what states have enacted one, and recent news about bottle bill efforts.

Northeast Recycling Council's State Programs Contacts
The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) provides contact information for various state waste reduction programs. The following states are included: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Earth 911
Earth 911 is a Web site that can be used to locate recycling centers and other waste reduction information by ZIP code.

Community Waste Prevention Facct Sheets and Toolkit Links
INFORM provides very useful information on local waste prevention in this online toolkit.

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Online Publications

Puzzled About Recycling's Value? Look Beyond the Bin (PDF) (16 pp., 317K)
This booklet describes the benefits of recycling, and focuses on the fact that recycling boosts the economy, conserves natural resources, and reduces solid waste.

Municipal Solid Waste in the United States
This report describes the municipal solid waste (MSW) stream in the United States, based on data collected between 1960 and 2006.

Variable-Rate or "Pay-As-You-Throw" Waste Management—Answers to Frequently Asked Questions (PDF) (38 pp, 368K)
This report provides guidance to communities considering the feasibility of variable rate programs for their solid waste collection programs.

State Scrap Tire Programs—A Quick Reference Guide: 1999 Update (PDF) (53 pp, 258K)
This document examines each state’s scrap tire management legislation and programs.

Pay-As-You-Throw: The Bonus Beyond Waste Prevention
The article (written by Janice L. Canterbury and published in Waste Age, May 1, 1996) discusses Pay-As-You-Throw programs and provides examples of various cities' experiences with such a program.

Nationwide Diversion Rate Study—Quantitative Effects of Program Choices on Recycling and Green Waste Diversion: Beyond Case Studies
This report, written by Lisa A. Skumatz, Ph.D. (October 1996), examines waste diversion data collected from a broad range of local waste disposal programs, including randomly selected communities of different sizes and locations.

Measuring Recycling: A Guide for State and Local Governments
This document describes the standard methodology developed by EPA for measuring recycling rates, and includes a glossary of more than 100 terms, standard volume-to-weight conversion factors, and other useful tools.

Cutting the Waste Stream in Half: Community Record-Setters Show How (PDF) (179 pp, 1.6MB)
This report highlights nearly 20 communities with record-setting residential or municipal solid waste reduction levels.

Complex Recycling Issues: Strategies for Record-Setting Waste Reduction in Multi-Family Dwellings (PDF) (24 pp, 356K)
This fact sheet packet acknowledges record-setting multifamily dwelling (MFD) waste reduction programs.

WasteWise Tip Sheet: Recycling Collection (text file)
This fact sheet describes the basics of recycling, what can be recycled, and how to implement a recycling program.

How to Start or Expand A Recycling Collection (PDF) (4 pp, 59K)
This document provides basic information on establishing recycling collection programs.

Rethinking Resources: New Ideas for Community Waste Prevention
This report explores some of the limiting factors to improved implementation of government waste prevention programs and describes a broad array of public and private sector initiatives that have overcome such limitations.

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