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What Happened to 22,000 Tons of Garbage in Rochester Hills?

Mayor says rewards-based, single-stream recycling program is fast-tracking Rochester Hills drive to become the greenest city in southeast Michigan.

Rochester Hills city officials have renewed an agreement that will continue offering a rewards-based single-stream recycling program, a switch made five years that since then increase the number of pounds diverted to landfills by 323 percent and increased overall participation in recycling.

The renewal with Recyclebank covers another five years, according to a news release from the city. One of the incentives of the program is a rewards program that allows residents to redeem points for discounts at local and national businesses.

Rochester Hills was the first Midwest community to adopt the Recyclebank program as part of an overall strategy to create a more sustainable community, according to the release.

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Since 2008, Recyclebank, in partnership with Republic Services, and Rochester Hills have worked together to reward residents for taking more sustainable actions, like recycling, with discounts and deals at local and national businesses.

At the time, Rochester Hills also expanded its household recycling program and implemented single stream collection, which allows residents to put all types of recyclable materials into a single bin. These recycling innovations, in concert with the recycling incentives program, led to a 323 percent increase in the pounds recycled since 2008.

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Rochester Hills Mayor Bryan K. Barnett says the city is on the way to becoming the greenest in southeast Michigan, due in large part to the single-stream recycling program and incentives program that have “successfully made sustainable actions and education more accessible to everyone in our community, and as a result, exponentially increased recycling rates.”

Since 2009, residents have increased recycling to an average rate of 670 pounds per household per year with a 27 percent diversion rate. Overall, Rochester Hills has collected nearly 22,000 incremental recycling tons since April 2009.

Through its program, Recyclebank has also helped save residents money and stimulate the local economy. A combination of dollars saved by residents and dollars spent at local businesses as a result of reward redemption adds up to more than $1.9 million since January 2011.

“When we work with a community as dedicated as Rochester Hills is to making sustainability a priority, an amazing partnership is formed and as team, we create a measurable impact,” said Paul Winn, Recyclebank’s senior vice president of client services, community solutions.

Rochester Hills schools have been longtime participants in Recyclebank’s Green Schools Program. Eight community schools have participated since the program’s inception. Green Schools awards grant money to schools to fund unique student projects that will green their classroom and community, such as a community garden or the implementation of in-school recycling efforts.

This year, two Rochester Hills schools participated in the Green Schools Program. Both Meadow Brook Elementary and University Hills Elementary proposed building community vegetable  and flower gardens to inspire a love of nature among students and help educate them on plants native to Michigan. Meadow Brook also proposed the use of rain barrels to water the garden and teach students about water conservation.

If they’re not already Recyclebank members, Rochester Hills residents can easily sign-up by visiting www.recyclebank.com/recycle and following the quick prompts to set up an account and verify their home address.



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