'The people of St. Louis want to recycle,' says alderwoman
For months, the City of St. Louis has picked up recycling bins from alleys and dumped them in with the trash. Officials blame a labor shortage.
“We have a decent fleet of equipment, but lack enough mechanics to keep them operational today,” Commissioner of Refuse Todd Waelterman told St. Louis on the Air.
The city utilizes an average of 40 trucks each day that complete 55 routes. “We keep up with our roll-cart routes daily, but fall behind during the week on alley pickup,” Waelterman said. “So far, we have been able to work weekends and catch up by the end of each week.”
Until the city is able to resume alley recycling pickups, residents can bring recyclables to 25 drop-off locations throughout the city — a practice that 28th Ward Alderwoman Heather Navarro highly encourages.
https://news.stlpublicradio.org/show/st-louis-on-the-air/2022-01-20/the-people-of-st-louis-want-to-recycle-says-alderwoman