Charleston residents were at a slight disadvantage during Wednesday’s fifth annual America Recycles Day because the city’s recycling facilities are limited.

Charleston’s sole recycling facility is a bin for paper, glass, aluminum and tin deposits behind McDonald’s at 12 W. Lincoln Ave. City Manager Bill Riebe said the facility has met the expectations everybody had for it, but that type of approach has limitations.

Charleston has yet to institute a curbside pick-up program for recyclable materials, a strategy credited with 10 to 15 percent waste reduction in some cities, Riebe said.

“The problem is coming up with a strategy people can afford,” he said. “People are busy. You have to make it convenient for people to participate.”

However, Eastern students have several additional recycling options, campus Recycling Coordinator Allan Rathe said. Separate recycling bins for paper, aluminum and plastic are available in the lobbies of all residence halls. Students can also recycle printer cartridges in envelopes provided by their residence hall’s front desk, he added.

Rathe, whose program recently received a Champion Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said he is pleased with the progress he has witnessed on the Eastern campus.

“Faculty, staff, and students are all doing their job,” he said.

Rathe encouraged off-campus students to urge their student representatives to push for curbside pick-up.

While recycling services in Charleston are limited, City Manager Riebe predicts an increase in the city’s recycling capacity in coming years.

“It’ll come,” he said, citing that the rising cost of raw materials will result in the increased fiscal viability of recycling.

For now, though, Riebe says the recycling depository behind McDonald’s is meeting Charleston needs.

“I wouldn’t say [its impact] is massive,” he said. “But it’s a program that people can accept and afford.”