Hawaii Kai, Mililani Try Curbside Recycling Pickup

In East Honolulu, the curbside recycling project began Saturday morning with high participation of thousands of Hawaii Kai residents going green.

"The participation rate seems to be well. The promising thing is you see a lot of homes only with the green, so you know they are trying to do without that second day of refuse pickup," said Department of Environmental Services employee Ken Shimizo.

In January, the city cuts regular refuse pick-up in Hawaii Kai from twice a week to once a week.

However, after the first day of curbside recycling, residents began to see the difference and forgot about the cutback.

"This is much better. We don't have piles on the street, and we don't have to go to the recycling center anymore," resident Penny Sing said. "We all want to do something that can make things better in our community, and recycling is a major way to do that."

If one were to walk around Hawaii Kai, they would see green bins overflowed with branches, shrubs, and palms.

The green waste project has been a success with minor issues. The city said it will try the recycling project for a year in both Hawaii Kai and Mililani before deciding whether curbside recycling should go island wide.
Chasta Nechvatal
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