Dive summary:

• Last year, residents in Dayton, Ohio both increased recycling and decreased trash figures, saving the city $121,000 in landfill fees.
• The city pays $37.25 for every ton of waste brought to the landfill, which last year was down 3,256 tons, and the 14.5% recycling increase covered the gap; now the city receives the service for free rather than paying a small fee.
• One of the city's tactics is to reward households for recycling: every month residents who recycle are entered into a raffle and four of them win $100.

From the article:

Ritchie said the city averaged more than 500 tons of recyclables per month in 2012 as residents pulled more recyclables out of the waste stream. On Rumpke’s sliding price scale, that meant the city went from paying a small fee for the company to collect recyclables, to receiving the service for free.

“Our goal was always to get to 500 tons a month, so it cost us nothing for recycling,” City Manager Tim Riordan said. “I’d now like to say we need a goal of 1,000 tons per month, and we hope to start seeing an increase thanks to our project with the Dayton Public Schools. I think we’ve got to take it up to another level.” ...