I would like to help you to understand why recycling in Chicago is not a practiced ritual. (“Be green: Buy blue bags and use them,” Maegan Carberry column, Oct. 18.)
First, the city should supply the residents with recycling containers for the alley, just as they do garbage cans. This is done in several surrounding suburbs and is quite executable. Why should the residents have to fork over $1.50 every couple of weeks? A plastic container would be much more economical in the long run.
Second, why should the citizens go through the effort of segregating recyclables (and purchase special bags to put them in) when the neighborhood homeless will just help themselves to the items when placed in the alley. I guess it should not matter what type of container the recyclable items are put out in since they will be snatched up before collection. Basically recycling is alive and well in the city, it is just not being practiced via the official program.
Lastly, many Chicagoans who taken the time and effort to participate in the program have witnessed their blue bag picked up as part of the normal trash collection and tossed into the rear of the same truck as the main refuse. Maybe due to the lack of education and promotion by the city, the citizens are uncertain of the effectiveness of sorting these items, which translates into a very discouraging feeling for many people who then believe their efforts are a complete waste of time and money.
The next time you are home sick or on vacation, spend a morning looking out the window into your alley and tell the readers what you see.
