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A change in the way the town recycles cardboard is confusing some residents who are unsure of where their boxes belong.
Winchester rearranged the compactors at the town transfer station this summer and converted the fourth compactor into a cardboard-only container. Residents are encouraged to put their cardboard there, but they can also put it in any of the other three compactors (only if the fourth compactor is full), — a situation that has perplexed some people.
Separating cardboard is expected to save the town and its residents money over time, said Nick Parlee, Winchester’s transfer station coordinator.
The resale value of cardboard covers the cost of transporting and processing, he said, meaning Winchester avoids paying for it.
“We can make recycling lower costs for the transfer station, and hopefully, that’s a cost that we can pass on as lower sticker fees the next go around for the residents,” Parlee said.
The yearly sticker fee is currently $340 for the first vehicle in a household. Additional permits per car in the same household are $30.
The cardboard policy is part of a new recycling contract with WIN Waste Innovations. Under the system, one compactor collects cardboard separately, and WIN Waste takes it away for free.
The contract also includes a fixed pricing model. Before, the town’s recycling costs rose and fell depending on market prices. Now, the town pays the same fee each month, so it’s easier to budget, and the town won’t be harmed if recycling prices drop.
“We opted for a fixed pricing to kind of shield us from if there is a situation where the commodity market tanks,” Parlee said.
Mary Mitchell, who has lived in Winchester for 26 years, said she supports the change.
“There’s a sign up that says it’s saving them money,” Mitchell said, while shopping at Stop & Shop. “And if that’s the case, I’m all for it.”
Still, Mitchell said she is sometimes unsure about where to put different kinds of cardboard, like glossy, coated, thin or Amazon packaging.
“I wonder if I’m putting it in the right bin,” she said. “That’s the only confusion.”
Parlee acknowledged some people have said they’re confused about the new system. There will be a learning curve for the residents as they adapt to this new change, he said.
The transfer station has four single-stream compactors, where residents can dispose of all their materials without sorting them out first for recycling. The cardboard-only compactor is in the fourth position because it is the closest compactor to the recycling attendant booth. The attendant can manage and catch any material that is not supposed to go into the cardboard-only recycling.
The other compactors take mixed recycling. Residents can continue to put cardboard boxes in the other compactors.
“There’s no fine for putting cardboard in the mixed recycling compactors,” Parlee said.
The transfer station, built on the site of a former landfill, has evolved over the decades. In the 1970s, Winchester operated an incinerator there. When state regulations required facilities to produce electricity alongside burning trash, the town switched to a transfer system, trucking waste off-site rather than processing it locally.
The cardboard rule follows a pattern of adjustments to stay aligned with state mandates. The town modified its policies after Massachusetts banned mattresses and textiles from disposal in 2022, setting up donation bins for clothing and a designated collection site for mattresses, Parlee said.
Venkatesh “Venky” Alagirisamy, who has lived in Winchester for eight years, said he likes using the transfer station.
“They renovated a lot these days compared to years before,” Alagirisamy said. “They have made [recycling] more efficient, which I really like.”
Alagirisamy said he also supports the change the transfer station is making.
“People used to mix things, and even though it’s for recycling, they want to separate the cardboard,” Alagirisamy said. “I think that’s an efficient way of doing it.”
Aayushi Datta is a journalism student at Boston University. This story is part of a partnership between the Winchester News and the Boston University Department of Journalism.
