To the Editor:
Besides the fact that recycling is the responsible thing to due to protect the environment for our future generations, the costs of recycling vs. landfill do not include the additional costs that will be incurred when the current landfill is full.
There are costs involved with capping the full landfill, finding another landfill site, doing a hydrogeological study of that site, the cost of the land and also the construction of the additional landfill area.
These costs run from $300,000-$800,000 per acre depending on the soil composition. The idea that we want to use valuable land to store our trash seems ill-advised to me, especially since I came from an area that eventually ran out of land availability and the city was forced to haul their trash away by train (another added expense) to other land areas hundreds of miles away.
A small monthly fee increase to support recycling all that we can is the smart way to go.
Teri Werner
Village of Rio Grande