With efforts across campus to go green, do these initiatives cross Broad Street to downtown?

According to Athens-Clarke County waste reduction administrator Suki Janssen, the answer is yes.

Between July 1, 2008 and June 30, 2009 the downtown Athens district recycled more than 17 tons of paper, 320 tons of cardboard and 848 tons of glass, aluminum and steel, according to the annual recycling report.

“We would like to improve the downtown district,” Janssen said. “The biggest challenge here is the sheer volume of glass.”

Janssen said downtown has about a 30 percent recycle rate.

Corey Ripley, a 23-year-old Athens native who manages The Loft, Magnolias and Pauley’s, said he tries to keep all of his recyclables and trash separate, but has had trouble with pick up.

“I feel like the city could make things easier,” Ripley said. “It makes things disheartening. You would think the city would make it as easy as possible on the businesses.”

Janssen said businesses downtown have the city pick up their trash, which is required to be in city-issued trash bags that cost $1.50 per bag. She said clear bags for recycling are also available through the city at no charge.

The system is designed to generate revenue for the city and encourage businesses to recycle, she said. The more recyclable materials a business puts in the free recycle bags, the less it needs to use the trash bags, which the business must pay for.

Janssen said downtown businesses also have the option to use their own recycling bags, as long as they are clear.

“Who wants to buy clear bags when we will give them away?” she said. “We want bags full of recyclables. The recyclables have to be in a clear bag – period. The bag’s content needs to be 100 percent recyclable.”

But Janssen said sometimes recycle bags contain items such as lemon wedges, straws and napkins, which she said is unavoidable but should be kept to a minimum. She said food is one of the biggest contaminants in recycling.

Businesses recycling cardboard are required to break each piece down so it sits flat outside with the trash and recycle bags.

Chris Helms, a 26-year-old employee at Walker’s Coffee Shop and Pub, said the recycling system has been working for the bar.

He said he keeps two trash cans behind the bar – one for trash, and one for glass.

“It makes it easier to take out the trash,” Helms said. “I mean, as far as extra work, there is none.”