CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. — Cash from scrap is the name of the game in Cheektowaga.
The town is fattening its coffers on what you throw out and wants more of its residents to participate.
In the corner of a town highway barn, two laborers set to work stripping appliances collected under a program that started last year, at the suggestion of a local scrap dealer, who told the town there was a lot of valuable material being set out on curbs.
"So we took a month and went out at night and we did see a large amount of scrap out there," said Town Highway Superintendent Mark Wegner.
They started advising the towns folk that rather than leave metal items at the curb, call the town.
"Put it by your garage, and we will come and grab it," said Wegner.
Once back at the town garage, the items collected are stripped of materials, which are sorted into separate bins.
It's done that way because different metals like copper and aluminum have higher value when sold as scrap. Separating them before they are sold ensures the town is getting top dollar, according to Wegner.
Components like motors and printed circuit board also find their way into various bins for recycling or sale.
According to Wegner, since the program began 15 months ago, the town has netted $158,000 in scrap metal sales. The money is put into the town's general fund.
Wegner says the program helps the environment while producing revenue, but also believes there are many residents who may be seeking to rid themselves of metal objects (without having to pay someone to haul it away) but are unaware of it.
"You call the highway department at (716) 686-3450, leave your address and what you have," said Wegner, who added that the town cannot enter homes to retrieve items, although they will go into backyards if homeowners request them to.
"What we like is for them to put it out by their garage or in the driveway near the house... but we don't want them to put it out near the street," he explained, noting that once it's on the curb it's likely going to be taken by individuals scrappers.
According to Wegner, in many cases if a resident calls and requests the town to pick up an item before 2 p.m., it will be picked up the same day.