Recycle Your Christmas Tree on January 8, 2011

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DALTON, GA - Recycle your Christmas tree on January 8, 2011 during “Bring One For The Chipper”. This free event will be held at the Home Depot parking lot at 875 Shugart Road in Dalton from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful volunteers will be collecting live, natural, undecorated Christmas trees from the public. In exchange for bringing a Christmas tree for the Chipper, residents will receive a free tree seedling or a free seed packet to plant at home.

Trees will be recycled into mulch that will be used for beautification projects and is available for free to residents within Whitfield County. “Bring One For The Chipper” has been a holiday tradition in Dalton-Whitfield for over ten years. The 2011 event marks 20 years of “treecycling” in the state of Georgia. This event allows communities to put discarded trees to good use. Over 5.5 million trees have been recycled as mulch or habitats for wildlife since the beginning of the program in 1991.

“Bring One For The Chipper” would not be possible without the support of state and local sponsors. State sponsors for this year’s event include the Georgia Department of Community Affairs’ Keep Georgia Beautiful program, The Home Depot, The Davey Tree Expert Company, Ferry-Morse Seed Co., and 11 Alive – Atlanta’s NBC Affiliate. Local sponsors include Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority, Whitfield County - Georgia Forestry Commission, Whitfield County Public Works Department, The Home Depot in Dalton, and Dalton Falls Miniature Golf.

Christmas trees must be free of ornaments, nails, hooks, wires, tinsel, lights, and other decorations. Only natural, live, real trees will be accepted, no artificial trees please.

If residents cannot participate the day of the event, there are two additional options available.

1.) The City of Dalton Public Works Department will collect trees from the curb. City residents should call 706-278-7077 for pick-up.

2.) All four Convenience Centers managed by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority have drop-off locations for yard debris that is recycled year round. These include the McGaughey Chapel, M.L.King Blvd., Westside, and the Old Dixie Hwy. Landfill & Convenience Center. For hours of operation and directions visit www.DWSWA.org or call 706-278-5001.

For more details visit www.KeepDaltonWhitfieldBeautiful.org or call 706-278-5001.

Recycling Ben's Bins is CLOSED

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Thank you for your interest in receiving a free recycling bin through our program Recycling Ben's Bins. There was a limited supply of 100 bins available for this month and we have exhausted the supply. The Recycling Ben's Bins program is now closed and no longer accepting registrations.

Please take a moment to subscribe to the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority's e-mail newsletter to be notified of when another recycling bin giveaway will take place. If you recycle or are interested in recycling at the Convenience Centers download the Recycling Guide for Whitfield County called "Stop Treating Us Like Garbage".

Keep in mind that recycling bins can take many forms, from repurposed trash cans, generic plastic bins, to reusable shopping bags and used cardboard boxes. We encourage you to separate your recyclables and drop them off at a Convenience Center near you. Recycling does make a difference.

“I Will Recycle” Artwork To Be Featured On Two Billboards

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DALTON, GA – Dalton Middle School 7th grader, Esmeralda Perez, is the overall winner of the 2010 America Recycles Day Billboard Contest hosted by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority’s program Target Recycling. Her billboard artwork was chosen out of 203 entries from eight middle schools in Whitfield County. It simply states “I Will Recycle” and includes the America Recycles Day slogan, “I Recycle”. The design will be displayed for four weeks on two billboards in the Whitfield County area.

In addition to an overall winner, each grade also had a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winner. 6th grade: 1st Place, Ryan Neal, North Whitfield Middle School, 2nd Place, Vy Huynh, Dalton Middle School, 3rd Place, Victor Chavarria, Dalton Middle School. 7th grade: 1st Place, Esmeralda Perez, Dalton Middle School, 2nd Place MyKayla Hicks, North Whitfield Middle School, 3rd Place, Grace Wiggins, North Whitfield Middle School. 8th grade: 1st Place, Brianna Giron, Eastbrook Middle School, 2nd Place, Carrie Carlton, Dalton Middle School, 3rd Place, Axel Aguila, New Hope Middle School. The nine students received goodie bags and a certificate of participation from DWSWA staff. Their entries can be seen online at www.DWSWA.org.

Liz Swafford, Recycling and Education Program Coordinator at the DWSWA, explained that America Recycles Day is celebrated every year on November 15th and encourages the public to make a pledge to recycle year round. “The new billboards are just part of a greater, ongoing educational campaign for recycling options in Whitfield County. Students should be commended for rising to the challenge of this contest. Designing for billboards is very different from creating a typical piece of artwork. Billboards are seen by people in moving vehicles and need to have a clear, concise message typically made up of six words or less.”

To learn how you can recycle too, visit www.DWSWA.org or contact Liz Swafford, Recycling and Education Program Coordinator, at 706-278-5001 or e-mail: lswafford@dwswa.org.

Limited Number of Recycling Bins Available

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DALTON, GA – Recycling Ben is giving away a limited number of 22-gallon recycling bins to qualifying residents in Whitfield County through a new program called Recycling Ben’s Bins [ Registration for this program is now closed. ]. One hundred recycling bins were obtained through a grant awarded by ALCOA and the Georgia Recycling Coalition (GRC) and for use at one of four Convenience Centers managed by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority. Convenience Center locationsinclude the Old Dixie Landfill & Convenience Center in the south end of the county, Westside in Rocky Face, McGaughey Chapel in Cohutta, and M.L.King Blvd. in Dalton. Each one features a recycling and household garbage drop-off area among other services. 

Those interested in obtaining a free recycling bin through Recycling Ben’s Bins [ Registration for this program is now closed. ] should register online at www.DWSWA.org. Participants should already use a Convenience Center location to drop-off their household garbage or recyclables, have Internet access, a valid email address, and commit to answering a short recycling survey online once a month for one year to help gauge the impact of the grant. Each recycling bin includes a recycling guide, which details the types of materials accepted and how to prepare them for recycling. Those new to recycling are especially encouraged to register to obtain one of the remaining bins.

To register for Recycling Ben’s Bins visit visit www.DWSWA.org. For recycling information contact Liz Swafford, Recycling and Education Program Coordinator, at 706-278-5001 or e-mail: lswafford@dwswa.org.

Winners Announced - 2010 America Recycles Day Billboard Contest

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 Winners of the first ever America Recycles Day Billboard Contest were announced today at the City Hall in Dalton, Georgia. The 2010 contest was hosted by Target Recycling at School, a program managed by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority which supports recycling efforts in 35 schools in Whitfield County. Liz Swafford, Recycling and Education Program Coordinator, congratulated all the 6th, 7th, and 8th graders that participated. "Designing artwork for billboards is very different from creating a typical piece of artwork.

Billboards are seen by people in moving vehicles and need to have a clear, concise message typically made up of six words or less." The winning design was created by Dalton Middle School 7th grader, Esmeralda Perez. Swafford added, "This year's billboard design simply states, "I will recycle" and "I Recycle" which is the America Recycles Day slogan."

In addition to an overall winner, each grade also had a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winner. The nine students will be receiving goodie bags and a certificate of participation. The results and student's artwork are listed below. It will take about two to three weeks for the billboard to be made and revealed to the public. We will keep you informed and have an official unveiling date soon.