Dalton Exceeds 1,000 Tons In Recyclables

Posted by The Chattanoogan.com on March 2, 2010 in the Happenings section.  Submitted by the DWSWA.

City of Dalton residents collected 1,010.9 tons or 2,021,800 pounds of recyclables in 2009, exceeding the 1,000 tons goal set for the city of Dalton Curbside Recycling program in the fall of 2008. The 2,021,800 pounds of recyclables are the equivalent of a stack of newspapers 11 miles high.

The Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority staff, Norman Barashick, executive director; Liz Swafford, Recycling and Education Program coordinator; and mascot Recycling Ben recognized residents during the Monday City Council Meeting at City Hall.  

Mayor Pennington and Councilwoman Wood accepted the award on behalf of the residents. Public Works Director Benny Dunn accepted the award on behalf of the Public Works Department. The drivers of the curbside recycling trucks, Dwayne Carvelle, Glen Gambrell and Derek Bagley, were also recognized for being the ones that get the job done on a daily basis. It’s estimated that together they handle more than 4,000 recycling bins per week. 

This is the first time in the last five years that Dalton has exceeded the city of Rome, which has a similar population, in the collection of curbside recycling. Curbside recycling in Dalton serves 7,500 households with a participation rate of 37.4%, an increase from 30% in 2008. In 2009 Public Works distributed an additional 705 blue bins in the community. In addition the city improved its bottom line by more $32,000 from avoided landfill disposal fees and revenue sharing. 

The city of Dalton’s Curbside Recycling program began in 1991. 2009 marked 18 years of environmental stewardship through recycling. Today, the city of Dalton provides one of the few curbside recycling programs in Northwest Georgia. 

In 2003 the Curbside Recycling program began delivering its recyclable materials for processing to the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority. The Authority operates a Materials Recovery Facility or recycling center at the Old Dixie Landfill which sorts, processes, and markets the materials. Since that time, the amount of recyclables collected by residents has almost doubled. 

Recycling reduces waste and pollution, saves energy, protects natural resources and environment, and is good for the economy, officials said. Many companies in Georgia, including local carpet manufacturers, rely on recycling programs to provide the raw materials they need to make new products. 

To receive another bin call the Public Works Department at 706 278-7077. If residents have more than one bin, they should put the fiber materials, such as paper, cardboard, and newspaper, in one bin and everything else in the other. 

For more information about recycling, contact Liz Swafford, Recycling and Education program coordinator, at 706 278-5001 or e-mail: lswafford@dwswa.org.

Dalton Beats Recycling Record

Posted on WDNN TV online on March 2, 2010.  (www.WDNNTV.com)

In 2009, Dalton collected 1011 tons of recyclables-- exceed their goal by 11 tons! On Monday night, the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority awarded the City of Dalton and the Public Works Department for all their hard work. 

Their goal for 2010 is to collect 1200 tons of recyclables!  Click here to see related video.

Pleasant Grove Elementary Targets Recycling

Posted on February 26, 2010 / 

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.

Fort Hill Schools Awarded Recycling Wagon

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

Resolution to Go Green

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.