Waste Watchers, the pay-as-you-throw program launched this month by Carroll County Waste Services in the 21784 ZIP code, works like this: Instead of paying a fixed monthly fee, customers pay $2.50 for each 33-gallon bag of trash they put on the curb. All recyclables are hauled free of charge.

In communities elsewhere in the United States, pay-as-you-throw programs have increased recycling rates by as much as 20 to 27 percent.

Bob Leatherwood, who, along with his wife Karen, owns Carroll County Waste Services, said that various factors made him take a hard look at pay-as-you-throw before becoming the first waste hauler in the county to offer the program.

One factor was the county's recent switch to a single-stream recycling program, which enables residents to put all recyclables -- plastic, glass or paper -- unsorted into a single container.

Even more recently, the county has lengthen the list of materials that the landfills will take for recycling. Along with the usual paper, cans, bottle and plastic containers residents can now include in their recycle bins narrow-neck, empty plastic containers (those with plastic resin identification codes Nos. 1 through 7, empty aerosol cans, milk and juice containers and juice and broth boxes.

-- Bob Allen

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