Several North American cities have implemented laws to enforce recycling, with fines for non-compliance. Seattle has made it illegal to put food waste in regular trash cans, and households with over 10% food waste receive a red tag and a $1 fine. The city aims to increase recycling participation to 60%.
Some North American cities have cracked down on residents who don’t recycle. San Francisco kicked the ball in 2009 with an ordinance that fined all building owners who didn’t opt into recycling services. Pittsburgh, Vancouver and San Diego followed similar laws. In 2015, Seattle took another step toward mandatory recycling by enacting a law making it illegal to put food waste in curbside trash cans, instead of sorting it into a compost bin or composting it yourself.
Oh look. They have not recycled:
A household with more than 10 percent food waste in their garbage bin gets a bright red tag slammed on the bin for all to see. Fines are $1 USD per violation, but larger buildings can be fined $50 USD.
In 2015, Seattle Public Utilities estimated that the average Seattle household throws out about 400 pounds (181 kg) of food each year. The city wants to increase recycling participation to 60 percent of all waste.
The city provides households with bins so that food and garden waste can be collected and composted, for a fee. Or residents can use the bins to set up their own composting operation.
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