As villages and cities across Ohio prepare to send out their street sweepers this spring, state environmental officials are considering a proposal that would let them recycle the debris.
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency said the sweepings could be used to help build or repair roads and medians or even be mixed with salt to help keep cars from sliding off icy highways during winter.
The idea, the agency said, could save money in dumping fees and keep thousands of tons of debris out of landfills.
Cities would have to remove all the twigs, cigarette butts, crushed cans and other trash that street sweepers routinely vacuum up. And cities would have to run tests to make sure there are no hazardous concentrations of metals or other pollutants.
via www.dispatch.com
According to the article, it only costs $40 per ton to dump the sweepings in the landfill. Based on a quick Google search, the estimated external costs of a ton of stuff dumped in a landfill is somewhere betwixt $3 and $80. Any idea of the costs/benefits of not dumping?
