``I think this is a great thing for recycling, both in New York and, I think, the rest of the country,'' said Robert Lange, director of the New York City Bureau of Waste Prevention, Reuse and Recycling.

The city is finalizing a 20-year agreement with Hugo Neu Corp. to process the city's curbside recyclables. The deal calls for Hugo Neu to build a $25 million material recovery facility at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, which Hugo Neu expects to complete by late 2007.

``I think the impact of having the scrap industry enter into the handling of post-consumer recyclables is going to have a ripple effect throughout the country,'' Lange said. ``Municipalities need that kind of relationship with that kind of business rather than necessarily with the waste industry.''

Processors have stronger incentives to maximize recovery since residue left over after separating recyclables represents a cost.

``They have a very different orientation than the large waste companies,'' Lange said.

New York's contract with Hugo Neu will secure a long-term, economically viable market for its recyclables.

``Three years ago, the city's recycling program was broken,'' said Mayor Michael Bloomberg. ``I am proud to announce that we are entering a new era for recycling in New York City.''

The New York Department of Sanitation will deliver all the metal, plastic and glass, as well as some of the mixed paper, that it collects through the city's curbside recycling program to Hugo Neu for the next 20 years.

``We look forward to collaborating with the city and a host of environmental organizations on education and other efforts, which will increase the recycling rate, decrease contamination and reduce the waste stream,'' said John Neu, chairman of Hugo Neu.

The city will perform annual waste composition studies so that they and the company can mutually agree on adjustments to address issues such as contamination, said Bob Kelman, Hugo Neu, senior vice president and general manager.

``We've got to be able to have a very open dialogue as the program matures,'' he said. ``We recognize this is more than a contract. It's really more like a partnership.''

The city will pay $48 per ton for processing all of its metal, plastic and glass, considerably less than the $107 per ton it faced before suspending its curbside recycling program two years ago. In total, the city will pay about $16 million per year for the processing, saving nearly $20 million annually.

``New York is now viewing these materials as commodities, not trash,'' said Kate Krebs, executive director of the National Recycling Coalition in Washington. ``This is truly the right ending to the story, and actually a new beginning.''

In 2002, Bloomberg and the City Council compromised on a $42.3 billion fiscal 2003 budget that suspended glass and plastic recycling. The city phased the materials back in to the recycling program over the next two years.

``Today marks the full maturing of recycling as a public service in New York City,'' Sanitation Commissioner John J. Doherty said. ``Recycling, which began as a sporadic community-based grass-roots movement in the 1960s and 1970s, has matured into a viable city-based industry.''

Barges will deliver 85 percent of the recyclables to the facility, and Hugo Neu will ship 75 percent of the material via barge to end markets, reducing the city's truck traffic by 55,000 vehicle miles per year.

``This not-so-small-step for New York City is actually a huge leap for recycling programs around the country,'' said Virali Gokaldas, a policy analyst for the Natural Resources Defense Council. ``This has been a hard-won achievement on the part of many advocates and government officials.''

But there is still work to be done, she said.

The city needs to address contamination in the recycling stream and increase the efficiency of its collection system to increase the amount of recyclables it recovers, Gokaldas said.

``They have certainly built a partnership with incentives for both the city and for the private company,'' she said. ``It would be practical to take full advantage of it.''

The city has made significant strides in reducing the amount of contamination in its material over the last two and a half years, Lange said. But there will be some residue because of the large urban environment, he said.

``Hugo Neu understands that,'' Lange said. ``We've had an ongoing dialogue about that, and we probably will for another 20 years.''

The city Department of Sanitation anticipates that the amount of contamination will be 15 percent or less, Lange said.

Much of the concerns about high levels of contamination in the past resulted from misinformation from private companies that were self-reporting the amount of residue.

``We've already been able to demonstrate that the numbers reported to us by our prior venders were all inflated,'' he said.

Contact Waste News reporter Joe Truini at (330) 865-6166 or jtruini@crain.com