Since December, 30% of recycling households in Jefferson Parish have been left without a clear option for what to do. Over 120,000 people in the parish took advantage of a public service to decrease landfills and the methane they spew in the atmosphere and to re-use everyday materials. In its place, the parish has offered an occasional Saturday drop-off site which has had starts and stops and plenty of uncertainty.

A recent tally of 500 cars dropped off recycling at the parish's two sites. Participation in recycling has dropped from 30% to under 1% as a result of our elected leaders' inaction.

It is time to bring back recycling in Jefferson and make it even better.

An argument against continuing the program was that it posed an extra cost for families already stretched thin. Recycling should be charged equitably: Charge households based on how much they use, like with other services such as water. The fact that only 30% were recycling should not be a reason to ditch the program. We all pay a monthly fee for Lafreniere Park. Even though I hardly go there, I still recognize its value and the need to chip in.

Jefferson Parish had a single-stream recycling program. It is often quoted that only 5% of recycled materials are actually used with single-stream programs. Compare that to Glass Half Full NOLA and Realcycle, local startups that recycle almost all the glass and other materials they procure through multi-stream programs. Many cities are now abandoning single-stream for more efficient multi-stream programs.

Why just focus on recycling? Let's get curbside composting as well. Many big cities now offer curbside municipal composting. The closest are Austin and San Antonio. We could be the first in the Southeast.

We need to do it.

EVAN DVORIN

Metairie