New stricter guidelines concerning imported recycled materials implemented by China are beginning to have a big impact on West Coast cities, including Bellevue.

The impact being felt by Bellevue is regarding mixed paper. This is paper other than cardboard, such as magazines, junk mail and office paper. China, which historically has been one of the largest importers of recycled material, has instituted a 0.5 percent contamination threshold for all mixed paper. The new, tighter market has slowed the flow of recycled materials.

The problem is that there currently isn’t a market for all the mixed paper that is being recycled by residents and businesses. The city’s solid waste hauler, Republic Services, has been able to find markets for roughly less than half of all mixed paper collected. Republic Services has begun stockpiling unmarketable paper and this has become a potential hazard for their collection facility. Consequently, Republic Services has requested, and the city has granted, one-time permission to landfill unmarketable mixed paper that is received from the city until April 20.

The City of Bellevue is giving Republic Services time to find new markets and implement quality improvements. For example, Republic Services is improving the sorting of materials to meet China’s contamination threshold requirements by slowing the processing line, adding employees to the sort line and improving optical sorting equipment.

Questions can be sent to recycle@bellevuewa.gov.