In Carroll County, where residents must hire their own trash and recycling collectors, one firm charges $264 a year, a company official said.
But Ulman also wants to drive up awareness of recycling. The executive wants countywide distribution of large wheeled recycling bins, which have boosted collections 25 percent since September on one Elkridge route used as a pilot program.
The covered bins encourage recycling because residents can toss in materials without separating them, then wheel them to the curb for collection, said Evelyn Tomlin, chief of the county Bureau of Environmental Services.
"It's trash or it's recycled. It's the same thing," Tomlin said.
Prices that the county is getting for materials it collects are soaring, especially mixed paper, Tomlin said.
If the county decides to pay for the new bins, it could cost $4 million -- nearly equal to the $3.6 million the county would save in the general fund budget if Ulman's bill is approved.
Council members Courtney Watson, an Ellicott City Democrat, and Greg Fox, a Fulton Republican, said they see the issue as one to be hashed out in this spring's budget deliberations.
Councilwoman Mary Kay Sigaty said she agrees with Ulman on the need to combine recycling and trash -- in residents' minds as well as in the county budget.
"Tying these two together is a way for people to think about recycling -- more extensive recycling," she said.
larry.carson@baltsun.com
