To lower the cost of sending bulky waste like bottles, cans and glass out of state, Torrington is joining a pilot collection program offered by Eye Recycle, a Waterbury-based company that provides a collection service for recyclable cans and bottles, was founded by Mike Stallings, who presented his company’s mission to the City Council.
This year, the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority, or MIRA, which handles about one-third of the state’s municipal waste, is closing its South Meadows facility in Hartford. According to ctpublic.org, MIRA announced in December 2020 that it planned to close its incinerators at South Meadows by July of next year, citing aging equipment and financial issues. The closure leaves cities like Torrington looking for a new recipient for its garbage and recycling materials.
All recycling is in a “single stream” system, meaning it’s not separated. Residents use blue bins for bottles, cans and other items, but separating them using Eye Recycle could save the city money, Mayor Elinor Carbone said. Redeeming bottles and cans using Eye Recycle works this way: residents get special bags for them, and are assigned a pickup date. Those areas of town that are enrolled in the pilot program — which is yet to be determined by city officials — will have to pay attention to those pickup days. “We can get those bottles and cans out of our recycling bins, saving the city the cost of handling tonnage of recycled materials,” Carbone said.