Danville schedules recycling workshop, aims for Jan. 1 curbside changes

Danville staff outlined steps to improve curbside recycling and set a public workshop for Oct. 30 at Inter-County Energy, with a target date of Jan. 1 for implementing stronger curbside measures.

At the Oct. 13 commission meeting, the city’s recycling coordinator (identified in the meeting as Miss Muncy) said the workshop is intended for Bull County residents and curbside recyclers in Danville to explain “why things have changed” and to answer questions from residents. The coordinator said the city has ordered ‘‘oops’ tags to place on contaminated carts, reflective strips to make carts visible to early-morning crews, and lid reminders for residents. “We’re gonna have to let people know… I don’t wanna do anything till after the thirtieth,” she said.

Muncy described the long-term market shifts that have made recycling more difficult, referencing the 2017 policy she called the “China sword,” when China restricted certain imports of U.S. recyclables and lowered market demand. She said glass will not be part of curbside pickup because it can contaminate other materials and damage processing equipment; the city intends to accept glass at a future center when operations move but not at curbside.

City staff said code enforcement and volunteer groups (including an Eagle Scout group) will help install reflective tags and lids across neighborhoods. The coordinator said the objective is to reach about 80% compliance by the Jan. 1 target but acknowledged current compliance is well below that level.

The coordinator urged residents to attend the Oct. 30 workshop and noted the city is preparing materials for code enforcement and the public ahead of the rollout. No ordinance or fine schedule was adopted at the meeting; staff said enforcement options, including potential fines, would be considered later if voluntary compliance proves insufficient.