City Attorney Mike Aguirre is calling for the City Council to let voters decide whether the city of San Diego should adopt a mandatory recycling ordinance.
Aguirre wants the question to be placed on next June’s ballot.
Though he is not tasked with producing policy, the city attorney had proposed an ordinance in early April that would require all city homeowners who receive free city trash service to participate in curbside recycling. It would also require office and apartment complex owners to provide recycling pickup to their tenants, who currently lack it.
While the city of San Diego provides free trash and recycling services to residents of single-family homes, it doesn’t offer recycling pickup to more than 100,000 units in apartment complexes, condos and multi-family dwellings.
The city estimates residents without curbside recycling discard nearly 100,000 tons of bottles, aluminum cans and paper each year.