RHODE ISLAND'S USED OIL COLLECTION AND RECYCLING PROGRAM: A STATE/COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP

摘要

A Used Oil Recovery Program was established by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) in April 1980, under a $6,230 grant from the Governor's Energy Office. It was set up to provide residents who perform their own oil changes with safe and accessible disposal sites, and one hundred eighteen (118) Rhode Island service stations agreed to be listed as collection sites.rnA 1980 survey of "do-it-yourselfers" in Providence indicated that 41% put their used oil in the trash, 30% dumped it onto land, and 15% poured it down storm drains. It was estimated that 13,000 gallons of waste oil was discharged into Narragansett Bay annually.rnIn the mid-1980's, the cost of crude oil decreased significantly, affecting the economic value of used crankcase oil as a recoverable energy resource. Prior to this, service stations were paid by the hauler for used oil collected. By 1987, haulers were charging service stations to remove their used oil.