Although many hotels and restaurants in Las Vegas are enjoying the benefits of waste reduction and recycling programs, others are faced with barriers that make recycling either cost prohibitive or of minimal benefit. Some of the issues include:1. Inadequate space. Although waste reduction and recycling have become an intergral part of many hotel and restaurant management plans, space constraints often make recycling prohibitive for some establishment. Hotel receiving docks are typically designed for trash receptacles and compactors, not for additional space need for sorting (separation of recyclable materials from the waste) and storage of materials for recycling. Newer hotels such as the Monte Carlo and Treasure Island planned for the necassary space needed to implement recycling at the hotels. Because several other hotels owned by the same corporations had successfulrecycling programs in place, both the Monte Carlo and Treasure Island programs were developed prior to their opening.
2. Lack of control. Many smaller restaurants are located in malls or mini shopping centers and must share the containers provided for garbage with other businesses. Because developers design these buildings with common garbage areas, restaurants are unable to recycle their waste without passing on some of the cost to other mall or shopping center businesses.
3. Perception of small dollar return relative to the effort. Hotels and restaurants that generate the largest quanity of waste, see the largest dollar return. If waste generation is minimal, recycling will mean very little additional savings.
4. Quantity of materials that can be recycled is small. This is true primarily of quick-service restaurants. The waste stream of these types of establishments typically have very little recyclable material. Plastics and paper are usually beverage cups, and disposable silverware and napkins, which are not recyclable. Although cardboard is recyclable, single restaurant volumes are often too small for a professional hauler/recycler to collect cost effectively.
5. Only select materials are suitable for collection. In Las Vegas, glass is collected for recycling only In residential areas, and from large quantity generators such as hotels. Restaurants with bars generate a considerable amount of glass, but are unable to recycle it because no market exists in Las Vegas for recycled glass. It must be transported to California for processing and sale. The weight and volume of the glass, the inability to process it in Southern Nevada for sale in other states, as well as the Bottle Bill in California, all make glass recycling in Las Vegas cost prohibitive. For that reason, local recycling companies will not collect it. This makes it difficult to effectively recycle what would in other regions be a valuable commodity.
6. Language barriers. Many restaurants and hotels have staff that speak little or no English. This makes training and communication about recycling especially challenging. However, posters or flyers with pictures can be helpful in communicating instructions on where to place materials for recycling.
7. Staff training and high turnover. Service industry jobs typically experience high staff turn over. Recycling requires additional staff training time.
8. Restaurants do not know how to start a recycling program. Little is available in Las Vegas to assist restaurants with their informational needs. Because hotels typically pay an outside service for recycling, educational needs have not affected the number or effectiveness of hotel recycling programs.
9. Lack of cooperation from the municipal waste hauler. Because waste hauling information Is considered proprietary, hotels and restaurants are unable to solicit feedback from Silver State Disposal. Hotels and restaurants must take the initiative to monitor their own recycling programs to determine new areas of focus, or to determine recycling and diversion rates.