The Pawtucket City Council is set to tackle a mounting controversy at a special meeting Wednesday night.
Council members will consider stiffer penalties for people who rummage through trash bins, stealing recyclables to cash in across the border in Massachusetts.
City officials said Wednesday that many of the scavengers are Massachusetts residents who cruise Pawtucket neighborhoods stealing recyclables, such as plastic bottles and soda cans, to redeem for cash.
A video posted on the Valley Breeze website purportedly shows a woman taking recyclables from a curb in Pawtucket. The driver dumps bags of plastic bottles and soda cans in a pickup truck with Massachusetts license plates and drives away.
City officials say it's a quick way for scavengers to make some easy money at nearby bottle redemption centers.
"A lot of people don't think it's against the law, but it is," said Harvey Goulet, director of administration.
"There is an ordinance on the books that says once the homeowner puts his trash on the sidewalk -- and his recyclables -- the city owns it," said Jack Carney, director of public works.
Officials said the more people steal recyclables, the more it costs the city.
"The more we recycle, the less we throw into that mountain in Johnston. That's the key. We pay $32 a ton now. The state has put some legislation in Resource Recovery. They give an incentive now. If you recycle to a certain percentage, you'll pay less than that $32 a ton," Carney said.
Officials said some scavengers make up to $100 a night.
"There's an awful lot of cans and bottles they're picking up and then they drive over to Massachusetts and cash them in," Carney said.
Anyone caught scavenging in Pawtucket can face up to $100 in fines for the first offense, up to $250 for the second offense and up to $500 if they are caught a third time.
At Wednesday night's meeting, City Council members will review the fines and ways to make them more enforceable.
In the meantime, Pawtucket residents are asked to help catch scavengers.
"Just get the plate number, call it into public works, and we'll take care of it," Carney said.
City officials said once they have the plate number, Pawtucket police can ticket the scavenger.
Anyone who sees a scavenger should call the Pawtucket Department of Public Works at 401-728-0500, ext. 236.
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