Although recycling was implemented to save the environment from mountains of trash, some local county officials think it may contribute to a new garbage problem.

Higher trash removal rates and the new recycling policy in Centre County will lead to illegal dumping of garbage, said members of the Centre Region Council of Government's Executive Committee at a meeting yesterday.

With recycling in place, people have less trash and are more likely to dump it somewhere, said member Ruth Lavin. State College Borough's fine for dumping on private property is only $30, she added.

"People may be dumping their trash or doubling up with neighbors to get rid of it," COG Executive Director Jim Steff said. The county should take a lead in requiring each residence to have a refuse collector, he said.

Member Elliot Abrams' proposal to put a section on the yearly per capita tax return for the name of each resident's garbage hauler, will be submitted to the Centre County Solid Waste Authority for review.

Also at yesterday's meeting, committee members reviewed concerns over the possible Centre Region governments' consolidation.

A year-long study to determine the feasibility of consolidating municipalities into one administrative body has not made much progress, according to committee members.

A major problem is the use of the word "consolidation" in the study report, committee member Lloyd Niemann said. Many people react adversely to consolidation, and suggested "regionalization" instead, he said.

Like consolidation, regionalization would pursue inter-municipal cooperation and reduction in the cost of municipal services, he said.

The idea of consolidation should be reconsidered at the COG General Forum, committee member Joe Carroll said. If savings in the provision of municipal services are substantial, consolidation should be pursued, Abrams said.

"If the savings would be 25 percent, we should consolidate, but if they would only be 2 or 3 percent, (consolidation) would not be feasible," Abrams said.