The City of Seattle has created a first-of-its-kind opt-out registry for residents and businesses who do not want to receive phone books every few months.
The City Council voted 8-1 in favor of an ordinance, which not only requires yellow pages publishers to pay for the costs of operating the registry, but also requires them to pay for recycling of unwanted and outdated yellow pages directories beginning next year.
The legislation also sets out penalties for yellow pages publishers who continue to deliver books when requested not to.
The Opt-Out Registry will be accessible on the web, by phone or by mail.
“Seattleites are constantly looking for ways to reduce their impact on the environment, and the Council has heard from an overwhelming number of people who don’t want phone books,” said Councilmember Mike O’Brien, who chairs the committee and is the prime sponsor of the legislation. “Creating a one-stop shop managed by a third party will help reduce clutter, increase residential security, and, save Seattle Public Utilities customers, the people of Seattle, money. This is a win-win for Seattle.”
Based on information supplied by some of the yellow pages publishers, Seattle Public Utilities estimates nearly 2 million yellow pages phone books are dropped off in Seattle every year, costing approximately $350,000 to recycle.
Through the ordinance passed today, the Council established a fee of $0.14 per book, likely declining to $0.07 per book after five years, to pay for the registry. Based on the principle of product stewardship where producers are responsible for recycling their products at end-of life, the legislation also imposed a cost recovery fee on yellow pages publishers, requiring them to reimburse the city for the cost of collecting and recycling discarded phone books, currently $148 per ton.
“This ordinance has national significance as the first phone book opt-out requirement in the country,” said Scott Cassel, Executive Director of the Product Stewardship Institute (PSI). “PSI is using Seattle’s legislation, along with other legislative examples from around the country, to create a model bill for states and municipalities that are ready to follow Seattle’s lead.”
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