As the drop-box program undergoes a continual shrinkage in use — and a simultaneous rise in fees and illegal dumping — SWACO is re-evaluating it.

The row of green dumpsters lining Indianola Plaza in Clintonville is almost a dozen bins long.

Last week, many of them were empty.

That’s become an increasingly common state for public dropoff recycling sites across Franklin County parks, supermarkets and fire stations. Since 2011, the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio recorded an almost 50 percent decline in dropoff tonnage.

“It’s reduced significantly,” said Kyle O'Keefe, director of innovation and programs for SWACO.

As the drop-box program undergoes a continual shrinkage in use — and a simultaneous rise in fees and illegal dumping — SWACO is re-evaluating it. The authority removed about 15 containers during the past year, leaving about 180 public recycling containers in Franklin County.

“We want to take a fresh look at this,” O'Keefe said. “The dropoffs provide a valuable opportunity to recycle, but they’re not the most convenient or effective option.”

David Shaffer, a Clintonville resident, is a remodeling contractor. In his line of work, he amasses pile upon pile of cardboard. Shaffer said he stops by SWACO’s public dropoff sites two or three times a week.

“A lot of contractors get a big dumpster," he said. "We like to recycle as much as we can. As many as there are, these things get used all the time. I would hate to see them go away.”

Shaffer said he also uses the bins as a supplement to his curbside recycling container when it fills up.

Before curbside service arrived in Columbus in 2012, the drop boxes served as the main means for recycling for many residents. Now, the program is an accessory to curbside recycling, O’Keefe said.

It’s also become more expensive to operate because of illegal dumping.

Between 20 percent and 25 percent of the materials thrown in are not recyclable, including construction materials, worn furniture and old electronics, annual audits show.

“Some of it is people not knowing; sometimes it’s very intentional,” O’Keefe said. “People are using these sites as an opportunity to dispose of things they know shouldn’t be in there. It all ends up going to the trash and it ends up costing us, too.”

Improper use is rampant enough that an environmental-crimes task force monitors problem sites and screens bins to remove bulky items before they’re sent for recycling.

For now, removal of drop boxes will continue on a case-by-case basis. During the next six months, SWACO will conduct a formal evaluation of the program’s efficiency and plans to roll out new pilot programs and boost educational efforts as well.

“People are well-intentioned and want to recycle, and we just want to make that easy,” said Hanna Greer-Brown, spokeswoman for SWACO. “That’s a priority for us, to go back to basics.”

O’Keefe said he hopes to redirect resources directly to the sites’ most faithful users — multi-family homes and businesses.

Ryan McMahon, who lives in a multi-family home in Clintonville, said both curbside and dropoff recycling have their drawbacks.

McMahon’s home bin frequently overflows with recyclables from him and his roommates and it often gets sifted through by trash pickers, he said. But gathering recycling and driving to a nearby public container is rarely convenient.

McMahon said he’d sooner use a public program to get rid of difficult-to-dispose items such as furniture and appliances.

“We don’t need this whole row of bins,” he said. “I’d rather see dumpsters.”

mrenault@dispatch.com

@MarionRenault