PULLMAN - The Pullman City Council got a crash course in the pros and cons of single-stream recycling Tuesday.

Single-stream, or commingled recycling, allows all recyclable products to be combined in one cart or bin, rather than requiring homeowners to separate them before pickup.

Devon Felsted, president of Pullman Disposal, said the volume of recycled goods typically increases about 50 percent when a commingling program is put in place.

"That's mainly because it's so much easier," he said.

That convenience, however, comes at a price. The roll carts used in single-stream recycling would cost about $60 to $70 each, Felsted said, and the value of the recycled products also decreases because they have to be sent to a "materials recovery facility" to be separated.

As a result, if Pullman were to implement single-stream recycling, Felsted estimated the people who choose to recycle would see a $2 to $4 increase in their monthly bills. The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission would have to approve any rate increase.

Pullman Disposal recycled about 1,650 tons of material in 2010.

Rick Finch, the waste management manager at Washington State University, said cost avoidance is one of the main reasons the university implemented commingled recycling in 2008.

The Whitman County landfill charges $102 per ton for garbage, he said, whereas WSU currently receives about $25 per ton for its commingled recyclables - down from $85 per ton a few months ago.

Taken together, Finch said, "that's a $137 per ton difference compared to throwing it into the landfill."

WSU's recycling program is "very self-sustaining," he said, and it's an indication of the direction the entire waste management industry is going.

"I expect in my lifetime that we (society) will be going into old landfills to mine for resources," Finch said. "They're a gold mine we've buried."

The council has discussed single-stream recycling several times over the years. Tuesday's presentation was just for discussion purposes, but Councilor Bill Paul made a motion to set a target date for implementing such a program.

The remainder of the council declined to go along with Paul's motion but seemed willing to continue investigating whether commingled recycling is a good move for the city.

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Spence may be contacted at bspence@lmtribune.com or (208) 791-9168.