ST. PETERS, Mo. — A big change is coming to recycling in St. Peters. For 25 years, residents used blue plastic bags that weren’t even recyclable. Now, thanks largely to a $320,000 grant, the city is rolling out new recycling carts that are more cost-effective and better for the environment.
For Lisa Bedian, spokesperson for the city of St. Peters, the past 25 years of recycling has come with challenges. Residents sorted paper, bottles and cans into these blue plastic bags, only for those bags and cardboard inserts to end up in landfills.
"We’re actually making an investment in our program so that it’s able to go on, into the future," said Bedian.
Starting this December, that investment takes shape as 95-gallon recycling carts are delivered to 20,000 homes. No more blue plastic bags—just a single cart to streamline the process and make recycling easier and less wasteful.
“It’s going to be so much easier that people don’t have to take the time to separate: Let’s put the paper in the one and the containers in the other. They can just put it in this one convenient cart," she said.
The city said ditching the blue plastic bags will save hundreds of thousands of dollars a year and cut down on landfill waste.
The transformation is thanks largely to a $320,000 grant from The Recycling Partnership and the American Beverage Association. Cait DeBaun, vice president of public affairs for the association, said the goal is to make recycling work better for everyone.
“By investing in the recycling in St. Peters, we’re able to get 47 million new pounds of recycled materials back. And that means they’re out of landfills and waterways and parks, the places we all enjoy," DeBaun said.
At St. Peters’ recycling facility, Bedian focuses on what comes next. She said residents will receive postcards and door hangers explaining the change, and the city will provide ongoing education.
"And of course people are going to have questions. Our folks here at Recycle City are here to answer those questions and let people know this is going be a change but it’s going to be a good change for all of us," she said.
Bedian said about 40 percent of St. Peters residents currently recycle. With the new carts, the city is hoping that number grows, creating a cleaner, greener future.
The upgrade in St. Peters is part of a nationwide initiative by the American Beverage Association known as Every Bottle Back. It’s a push to provide communities across the U.S. with recycling carts.