To celebrate the 40th Aniversary of Earth Day, Recycling Ben and Liz visited Pre-K students at both Friendship House in Dalton and Mill Creek Child Learning Center in Rocky Face. The students learned about recycling and reusing by making music shakers with plastic water bottles.
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DALTON — Recycling Ben, mascot for the Target Recycling program, presented the seventh-grade class at New Hope Middle School an award for having the highest recycling rate during the second quarter of the 2009-2010 school year.
The award chosen by school staff is a two-level cart to help collect recycling bins from classrooms and offices. Cheering students had the opportunity to also win Recycling Ben hats and T-shirts by naming items that are recyclable. Thanks to the efforts of local teacher Janet Crumley and an enthusiastic team of seventh-graders, New Hope Middle School practically doubled their initial recycling rate of 5.5 pounds per student during the first quarter of the school year to an amazing 10.5 pounds per student during the second quarter of the school year.
Target Recycling is a recycling program managed by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority that includes educational opportunities and recognition of participation for city of Dalton and Whitfield County schools. Since fall 2008, local schools have hosted Target Recycling containers where they collected mixed paper products like cardboard, paper, office paper, books, cereal boxes, magazines and newspapers. Each quarter the school with the highest recycling rate receives a custom award that will help improve the recycling program or beautify its campus. Awards include items like recycling bins for classrooms or benches made from recycled materials.
To improve the recycling rate at your school, contact Liz Swafford, recycling and education program coordinator, at (706) 278-5001 or e-mail lswafford@dwswa.org.
Chattanoogan.com Student SceneSubmitted by the DWSWA
During the month of January, Pleasant
Grove Elementary recycled 3,240 pounds of mixed paper, the equivalent of a stack of newspapers two and a half school buses long! The school was able to move from a very low recycling rate of 0.8 lbs. per student during the month of August 2009 to an astonishing 5.9 lbs. per student in January 2010. They surpassed other high performing schools like New Hope Middle School that reached 5.2 lbs. per student in November 2009, and Dawnville Elementary School that reached 5.0 lbs. per student in December 2009.
Pleasant Grove Elementary began recycling mixed paper with the Target Recycling program managed by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority (DWSWA) last year.
However, their numbers remained stagnant, under 1 lb. per student each month. It took some newfound enthusiasm and leadership from the principal, Mr. Richard Knox, and key staff members, like teacher Chris Harrison, to get the students and other staff motivated to participate in recycling.
What does it take to collect the equivalent of 21,600 cereal boxes in one month? An enthusiastic staff and student body that believes that recycling is good for the environment. Recycling bins in every room collect mixed paper and serve as daily reminders to recycle. Mixed paper includes newspaper, writing paper, office paper, magazines, junk mail, telephone books, cardboard, and even textbooks. For some schools, these paper products can make up over 40% of their waste.
On January 19th Recycling and Education staff from the DWSWA, Michael Foxx and Liz Swafford, visited the school council to discuss taking their program to the next level. They provided additional information for educational resources, mini-posters, and the infrastructure needed to begin a recycling program for plastic bottles. With the addition of plastics, the school’s recycling rate will continue to rise making Pleasant Grove Elementary one of the local leaders in school recycling.
Currently all public schools in the City of Dalton School District and the Whitfield County School District participate in the Target Recycling Program. During the month of January the schools collectively recycled the equivalent of a stack of newspapers 24 school buses long.
To take your school to the next level call Liz Swafford, Recycling and Education Program Coordinator for DWSWA, at 706-278-5001 or e-mail her atlswafford@dwswa.org.
Submitted by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority, Published in The Daily Citizen
DALTON, GA — Recycling Ben, mascot of the Target Recycling program, presented Pam Massingale, coordinator for North Star, and Lloyd Brochu, director of Crossroads Academy, with a recycling award on Wednesday.
The Fort Hill Schools have done an outstanding job for the first quarter of the 2009-2010 school year, reaching an average of 14.7 pounds of recyclables collected per student.
They chose the award of a blue wagon to help collect recycling bins from each classroom and office.
Target Recycling is a recycling program managed by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority that includes educational opportunities and recognition of participation for Dalton city schools and Whitfield County schools. Since the fall of 2008 local schools have hosted Target Recycling containers where they collect mixed paper products like cardboard, paper, office paper, books, cereal boxes, magazines and newspapers. Each quarter the school with the highest recycling rate receives a custom award that will help improve the recycling program or beautify the school’s campus. Awards include items like recycling bins for classrooms or benches made from recycled materials.
To improve the recycling rate at your school, contact Liz Swafford, recycling and education program coordinator, at (706) 278-5001 or e-mail her at lswafford@dwswa.org
Published in the issue's Go Green page. ChamberLink January 2010.
You have decided to go green this year and made a New Year’s resolution filled with good intentions. To make your green resolution a reality, here’s a short guide to help you get started.
Choose to Reuse:
We live in a society that encourages disposal, everything from baby diapers to Styrofoam coffee cups are thrown away after just one use.
Unfortunately Styrofoam is very difficult to recycle. If you use a Styrofoam coffee cup every day at the office, in just one year you use and throw away 260 cups or more. If you want to go green and reduce the amount of trash you produce during the year, you can switch to a coffee mug. You will need only one for the whole year. Reusing something so simple can cause a large impact over time.
Choose to Recycle at Home and Work:
Recycling is environmentally friendly because it allows for a more efficient and wise use of natural resources. Instead of cutting down trees to make new paper, old paper is collected and recycled to create more paper. The majority of products you encounter every day are recyclable. Plastic, cardboard, paper, glass, and aluminum can all be recycled in the Dalton-Whitfield area. To begin you will need a separate container for recyclables, such as a recycling bin or a clearly marked trash can.
Many residents of the City of Dalton already have a blue curbside recycling bin that is used for all recyclables. These are separated at the curb when they are picked up by Public Works. If you live in the City of Dalton, the Department of Public Works may already be offering Residential Curbside Recycling in your neighborhood. For more details, call 706-278-7077 or visit the City of Dalton’s website and go to the Public Works section http://www.cityofdalton-ga.gov.
However, if you don’t have service in your area you need to separate your recyclables yourself before dropping them off at a Convenience Center like the Old Dixie Landfill. The main categories are Plastic (#1, #2), Cardboard, Mixed Paper, Glass, and Aluminum. You can drop-off your recyclables at any one of four Convenience Centers operated by the Dalton-Whitfield Regional Solid Waste Authority (DWSWA).
If you have a business in the City of Dalton or Whitfield County you may qualify for the Target Recycling program offered by the DWSWA. This program can help your business recycle paper, cardboard, plastic and aluminum products by setting up a collection site for your whole building. For more information on the Convenience Centers or the Target Recycling program call 706-278-5001 or visit their website http://www.dwswa.org.
It’s easier than ever to go green in Dalton-Whitfield. Here’s to a greener you and greener New Year!
Liz Swafford is the Executive Director of Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful and the Recycling and Education Program Coordinator for the Dalton-Whitfield Regional Solid Waste Authority (www.DWSWA.org). Contact her by e-mail at: lswafford@dwswa.org or call 706-278-5001.
