Recycling

The American economy generates wealth and opportunity for more people than ever before.  However, one of the disadvantages involved is that it also generates tremendous amounts of solid wastes.  Estimates indicate that American consumers and businesses throw away nearly a half million tons of trash daily.  This doesn't even include the amount of toxins produced by industries that manufacture so many of the products we buy. 

Numbers are sometimes hard to visualize.  To really get a feel for the sheer volume of waste we generate every day, visit the Montgomery County Solid Waste District's Transfer Station, and / or the Stony Hollow Landfill, south of Dayton. There are only two choices for disposing of what we throw away: bury it in a landfill, or recycle it.

Nature has been recycling matter and energy for billions of years.  When a material is extracted from the earth, processed into a usable form, and then buried in a landfill, it is permanently removed from the natural cycling of matter.  It stands to reason that such a process isn't sustainable forever.

The Montgomery County Solid Waste District
http://www.curby.org

The Solid Waste District has an incredible number of recycling programs, services, and education resources for the citizens and businesses of Montgomery County.  Here is a list of them at a glance:

• Recycle Rally - school competition for paper products, cash prizes

• Workshops - composting, how to reuse materials

• Waste Assessment for Businesses

• Special Recycling Programs - farm tires, computers & appliances, household hazardous wastes

• Material Reuse Facility (McMRF) - accepts building materials, office furniture & supplies, art supplies. Materials are redirected to non-profit organizations

• Education Resources - Outreach for schools, contests, speakers, projects,
  library, internet access, tours, displays, teacher workshops

• Links to Recycling Vendors - for businesses and the public

Featured Upcoming Events at the Solid Waste District Include the following: 

	Earth Day to Earth Day Poster Contest; open to grades 1-12; registration in September; students create brightly colored poster illustrating a specific solid waste theme.
	Recycled holiday ornament contest; open to grades 1-12; registration in November; entries displayed during the holiday season.

Rumpke Recycling
www.rumpke.com

Recyclables from Montgomery County Solid Waste District's two transfer stations are sent to the Rumpke company in Hamilton County.  Among other business ventures, Rumpke is the largest recycler in the midwest.  For plastics, they are  currently accepting only #1s and #2s.  They also accept magazines, tin cans, aluminum cans and glass bottles as well as newspaper.