Cape Elizabeth residents might soon be required to recycle as the issue moved a step closer to becoming a town ordinance.

The Town Council recently voted unanimously to send a mandatory-recycling proposal to its ordinance subcommittee. If the committee gives it a thumbs up, the Town Council would need to vote on it before it would go into effect.

“I think recycling is important and I’m not opposed to it becoming mandatory,” said Cape resident Jared Leaman-Farley, intercepted Monday at the Recycling Center. “I think it’s a very smart move on the town’s part.”

The town’s recycling working group suggested mandatory recycling to the Town Council late last year. “We saw that waste disposal is one of the biggest, if not the biggest line items in the budget,” said Town Councilor Swift-Kayatta, who chaired the group.

Following a hearing Feb. 9 on the group’s recommendations, the council also directed Town Manager Michael McGovern to include in his 2009-2010 budget proposal a Recycling Center staff person to help educate and assist users with recycling.

The staff person, who would monitor what goes into the hopper at the recycling center and enforce recycling rules, would be paid about $27,000.

So far, no one has proposed how to enforce the ordinance if recycling becomes mandatory.

Residents at the Feb. 9 hearing questioned hiring a staff person during the current potential budget crisis.

“Is that person going to be a policeman, or an educator?” said Cape resident Richard Dunham. “We need a more detailed job description that would mean increased possibility of more recycling, not just $27,000 of additional expense.”

At the Recycling Center on Monday, Pat Kempton, another Cape resident, offered another opinion. “I think the benefits of recycling outweigh the cost of paying a person to monitor it,” Kempton said. “If we’re required to do it, then we’re going to start recycling more.”

A more specific job description will be discussed at a later Town Council meeting, officials said. The ordinance committee will look at a model ordinance from ecomaine, the regional waste facility used by Cape Elizabeth.

McGovern pointed out that ecomaine charges $180 per ton cost for nonrecycled material as opposed to $38 per ton for recycled material.

One resident, Carl Dittrich, told councilors Feb. 9 that recycling education starts at home and not at the Recycling Center.

“It’s sad to see what goes into the hopper, it’s amazing,” he said. “How is someone going to police that? Unless there’s a financial burden or a penalty, people aren’t going to change their ways.”

“I think education, if it’s done properly and implemented well, can have a significant impact on the recycling rates,” said Town Councilor Paul McKenney.

The working group removed pay-per-bag fee for waste disposal from the table. Swift-Kayatta said the system would save an estimated $19,000, but the working group saw it as a transfer of costs from the taxpayers to the users.

In January, the council reduced hours at the recycling center for estimated annual savings of $14,000.

(Recycle1.jpg: guy dumping stuff into bin) Cape resident Jared Leaman-Farley empties recyclables into the hopper at the Cape Elizabeth Recycling Center. It’s voluntary now, but recycling here could become law.(Recycle2.jpg:) Signs at the Cape Elizabeth Recycling Center advise residents of what can and cannot be put into the hopper.(Recycle3.jpg:) Cape resident Jared Leaman-Farley empties recyclables into the hopper at the Cape Elizabeth Recycling Center. It’s voluntary now, but recycling here could become law.(Recycle4.jpg:) Cape Elizabeth Recycling Center attendant Peter Vickerman helps Cape resident Fran Findley with her recycling.