In 1997, as part of DSNY's ongoing assessment of strategies to gauge the performance of NYC’s Curbside Recycling Program, it conducted a short-term, three-part pilot program to measure the effectiveness of mixed waste processing. Each part of the pilot is treated in a chapter of this report.
This study was initiated in response to Local Law 19 requiring the City to achieve a mandatory recycling goal of at least 25% of the waste stream. The filed data collected will be used by DOS to implement recycling feasibility studies, pilot-scale projects, and full-scale facilities.