With two of the lowest recycling rates in the state, Narragansett and South Kingstown joined forces last year to study how they might improve their numbers and reduce the amount of trash going to the state Central Landfill.

It looks as if the study might start to pay off.

Leading the way is South Kingstown, where plans are in the works to license residential trash haulers and require that they offer recycling to their customers.

In return, haulers will reap a reward: a lower rate when they bring trash and recyclables to the Rose Hill Transfer Station. The actual rate will be based on a sliding scale, according to how much the hauler’s customers are recycling.

The setup, unusual in a state where most municipalities hire a single trash hauler rather than leave the choice to individual homeowners, is intended to promote recycling in a town where the official rate has been about 10 percent.

The rate has been low because haulers, until now, have had no incentive to provide a recycling option to customers.

“What we’re attempting to do is provide an economic incentive to the hauler,” said Town Manager Stephen Alfred. “He’s charged a higher rate if he doesn’t meet the recycling goals.”

In addition to licensing haulers and requiring them to offer recycling, South Kingstown will also allot a portion of its cap at the Central Landfill to each hauler bringing materials to the transfer station, based on the hauler’s customer list, Alfred said. In this way, haulers will be even more motivated to encourage residents to recycle, because the recyclable materials won’t count toward the cap.

WHILE SOUTH Kingstown expects to have its program up and running by July, Narragansett still faces some key decisions.

Last year, a state-financed study provided the town with four basic options, from keeping the current system but requiring haulers to recycle, to hiring a single company to pick up trash and recyclables.

Narragansett watched from the sidelines as South Kingstown sought bids from single haulers and then rejected the single-hauler concept — the option favored by the consultant — after the bids came in higher than expected. Local haulers and some residents had also opposed the single-hauler concept, saying the local companies were being edged out.

The turn of events makes it easier for Narragansett to pursue the option that the Narragansett Town Council seemed to favor all along — the current system of multiple haulers chosen by residents, only with mandatory recycling. With South Kingstown moving forward, the Narragansett council last week directed town staff to evaluate the options for mandatory recycling.

Town Manager Jeffry Ceasrine said he expects Narragansett to pursue a program similar to that in South Kingstown, possibly as soon as July.

“It doesn’t make sense for us to have a different program when we share the Rose Hill Regional Transfer Station,” he said.

IT REMAINS to be seen what residents will pay for trash pickup with recycling.

According to the report, residents with private subscription haulers were typically paying about $26.50 a month, without recycling. In theory, it costs more for a hauler to offer recycling, but South Kingstown haulers who bring in recyclables will be charged less at the transfer station than they were under the old system, according to figures provided by Alfred and those in last year’s report.

While the recycling rate for Narragansett and South Kingstown residents who hire private haulers has been about 10 percent, other towns have done better. North Kingstown last year received a $27,428 grant from the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation, which operates the Central Landfill, after coming in with the state’s top recycling rate — 32 percent. Charlestown, second at 29 percent, received $2,810.

Statewide, a total of about $300,000 was awarded to cities and towns based on their recycling efforts, said Sarah Kite, recycling manager at Resource Recovery.

To be eligible for such awards, a municipality must have a contract to deliver its solid waste and recyclables to the Central Landfill, in Johnston..

Alfred said South Kingstown recently signed a contract; Ceasrine said Narragansett will sign one soon.

redgar@projo.com