2014 Billboard Design Contest Winner Announced

“I want to be recycled” is the overall winner for this year’s America Recycles Day Billboard contest.  The design was created by Eastbrook Middle School 7th grader Reina Paniagua.

Eastbrook Middle School 7th grader, Reina Paniagua, is the overall winner of the 2014 America Recycles Day Billboard Design Contest hosted by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority’s program Target Recycling at School. 

The design chosen out of 162 entries includes the phrase “I want to be recycled” which was one of the themes of the contest.  The artwork is eye catching and very colorful with a group of recyclable materials shouting out their desire to be recycled in a blue speech bubble.  

The winning design will be displayed on two billboards in the Whitfield County area for at least one month.  This is the fifth year of the design contest open to Whitfield County middle school students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade attending either a public or private school that recycles with Target Recycling at School.

The billboard design contest had a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winner from each grade level.  The nine students, listed below, received a certificate of participation and a gift bag with items made from recycled materials. The first place overall was selected from the first place design from each grade level.

Eastbrook Middle School students who placed in the billboard contest are pictured with their artwork. Top Row, Left to Right: Graviela Zamora, Citlally Garcia, Angela Torres, and Reina Paniagua. Bottom Row, Left to Right: Luis DeLeon, and Moises Gaspar.

6th grade:

• 1st Place – Angela Torres, Eastbrook Middle School
• 2nd Place – Yanira Guzman, Dalton Middle School
• 3rd Place – Leonardo Fraire, Dalton Middle School 

7th grade:

• 1st Place and Overall Winner – Reina Paniagua, Eastbrook Middle School
• 2nd Place – Graviela Zamora, Eastbrook Middle School
• 3rd Place – Citlally Garcia, Eastbrook Middle School 

Dalton Middle School students that placed in the billboard contest are pictured with their artwork.  From Left to Right: Leonardo Fraire, Yanira Guzman, and Alondra Martinez.

8th grade:

• 1st Place – Luis DeLeon, Eastbrook Middle School
• 2nd Place – Moises Gaspar, Eastbrook Middle School
• 3rd Place – Alondra Martinez, Dalton Middle School

America Recycles Day is a community-driven event dedicated to promoting recycling awareness, commitment, and action in the U.S. thru its partnership with Keep America Beautiful.  For more information on recycling, and to take the pledge to recycle visit www.AmericaRecyclesDay.org.   

  Target Recycling at School provides recycling collection services and environmental education opportunities to schools in Whitfield County.  For more information call 706-278-5001 or visit www.dwswa.org. 

DWSWA Facilities to be CLOSED Friday, July 4, 2014

Facilities closed in observance of Independence Day

Four Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority facilities will be closed on Friday, July 4, 2014 in observance of Independence Day.  Locations include the Old Dixie Landfill & Convenience Center, McGaughey Chapel Convenience Center, Westside Convenience Center, and the M.L. King Convenience Center. 

All locations will reopen on Saturday, July 5, 2014 from 7:00 am to 3:00 pm.  For more information visit www.DWSWA.org or call 706-277-2545.

Independence Day Holiday Schedule:

• Thursday, July 3, 2014 – All Locations Open - Normal Hours (7:00 am – 6:00 pm)
• Friday, July 4, 2014 – All Locations Closed
• Saturday, July 5, 2014 – All Locations Open (7:00 am – 3:00 pm)  Resume Normal Operating Days and Hours

Bulky Waste Round Up Event on June 21, 2014

Annual Bulky Waste and Electronics Collection Day for Whitfield County Announced

The 2014 Bulky Waste Round Up is scheduled for Saturday, June 21, from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm at four drop-off locations in Whitfield County.  During the event Whitfield county residents may properly dispose of or recycle bulky waste without paying transportation fees.  The main location is the Old Dixie Hwy. Landfill and Convenience Center at 4189 Old Dixie Hwy. S.E., in Dalton.  Additional locations are the parking lots for Westside Middle School, North Whitfield Middle School, and the old Eastbrook Middle School gym parking lot facing Hill Street.  

Bulky waste refers to items that are too big for a typical household garbage can, like furniture and appliances.  Each of the four drop-off locations will be accepting bulky waste such as mattresses, box springs, sofas, couches, indoor furniture, appliances, baby or child car seats, bookshelves, large plastic toys, grills, swing sets, gym equipment, plastic swimming pools, patio furniture, basketball goals, and scrap metal. 

Electronics to be collected at each location include items like laptop and desktop computers, MP3 players, video game systems, digital cameras, video recorders, DVD players, cellphones, smartphones, scanners, printers, tablets, current television sets, and eBook readers.

Items that are not accepted at the three school locations include tires, home remodeling debris or waste, and household hazardous waste.  Those items need to be delivered to the Old Dixie Highway Landfill and Convenience Center location during the event hours.  Tires will be charged the regular recycling rate that starts as low as $2.00 per tire for passenger vehicles.  Home remodeling debris can be properly disposed of for at the special rate of 1 cent per pound.  Household Hazardous Waste, which includes items such as household pesticides, swimming pool chemicals, varnish and latex paints, can be dropped off free of charge.  For more information about each category visit www.DWSWA.org, call 706-277-2545, or 706-278-5001.

If you are unable to attend the event this year, please note that Household Hazardous Waste is accepted at the Old Dixie Hwy. Landfill and Convenience Center on the third Saturday of each month from 7 am to 2 pm.  Electronics, scrap metal, and bulky waste are accepted year round for no charge at the same location, Monday thru Friday 7 am to 6 pm, and Saturday 7 am to 3 pm.  Three additional Convenience Centers in Whitfield County also accept tires and bulky waste year round with applicable fees.

No matter what you need to drop-off or when, don’t forget to secure your load for cleaner roads. Tie down and put a tarp on items placed in the back of a pick-up truck or trailer. 

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority, and Whitfield County Public Works organize this annual event.  For more information or to volunteer, call Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful at 706-226-6211, or e-mail lswafford@dwswa.org.

Conasauga River Watershed Cleanup Honored by Confluence Award

Pictured from Left: Gretchen Lugthart and Katie Owens, Conasauga River Watershed organizers, accepting the Confluence award from Rivers Alive representative Lynn Cobb during the River’s Alive award ceremony on April 15

(Dalton, GA, April 30, 2014) –  Volunteers and stream cleanup organizers from across the state recently met in Atlanta to celebrate the accomplishments of the state’s largest volunteer cleanup program, Rivers Alive.  The Rivers Alive awards honor the efforts of individuals and groups who are working to improve Georgia’s waterways, one trash bag at a time.  Volunteers wade into rivers, lakes and coastal waters each fall as part of the continuing statewide campaign to clean and preserve more than 70,000 miles of Georgia waterways.

The Rivers Alive awards ceremony, held on April 15 at Zoo Atlanta, recognized groups of volunteers, as well as individuals and businesses for their efforts in 2013.  The Confluence award, which recognizes successful community partnerships, was awarded to organizers of the annual Conasauga River Watershed Cleanup event.  Confluence, defined as the flowing together of two or more streams, or rivers, clearly describes the coming together of local organizations for one purpose.  The members of the organizing committee for the annual cleanup are Jeff Carrier (Carpet & Rug Institute), Dirk Verhoeff (Conasauga River Alliance & Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority), Gretchen and John Lugthart (Dalton State College), Phillip Pfeifer and David Oxford (Dalton Utilities), Sandy Adams (Keep Chatsworth-Murray Beautiful), Liz Swafford (Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful), Josh Smith and Dan Huser (Limestone Valley RC & D), Brenda Jackson (Murray County Extension), Katie Owens (The Nature Conservancy), and Chris Hester (Whitfield County).

“This is certainly an appropriate award for our group,” said John Lugthart, one of the organizers and a Dalton State professor of biology.  “We have a great team of people, all of whom are committed to educating our community about the importance of protecting our local streams and the Conasauga River.  We are coming up on our 20th annual cleanup and are still going strong!”

During the 2013 watershed cleanup 258 volunteers from Whitfield and Murray Counties removed trash, debris, and invasive plants from seven sites in the two counties.  Overall, volunteers collected and removed 8,329 pounds of trash and 37 tires. 

Funding sponsors for the 2013 event included: Shaw Industries, J&J Industries, Dalton Utilities, Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority, The Nature Conservancy, and the Conasauga River Alliance. 

At the state level, during the 2013 Cleanup, 27,679 volunteers cleaned more than 1,800 miles of waterways and removed over 500,000 pounds of trash and recyclables, including car parts, grocery carts, luggage, basketballs, TVs, sinks, bicycles, tires and plastic bottles. Rivers Alive is a program of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division. “Rivers Alive cleanups provide important opportunities for citizens to make a big difference while volunteering just a few hours of their time,” said EPD Director Jud Turner. “Citizens return home with a greater awareness of how our everyday choices impact our environment.”

About Rivers Alive

Rivers Alive targets cleanups across all waterways in the State of Georgia including rivers, lakes, and coastal waters.  The mission of Rivers Alive is to create awareness of and involvement in the preservation of Georgia’s water resources.  To volunteer or participate in a local cleanup effort or to obtain more information about the statewide campaign, call 404-463-1464 or go to www.riversalive.org.

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful Earns President’s Circle Award for 2013

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful was the recipient of the President’s Circle Award issued by Keep America Beautiful for it’s efforts in 2013. Board members pictured include: Phillip Pfeifer, John Paul Bledsoe, Anthony Cline, Patricia Edwards, and Liz Swafford.

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful received Keep America Beautiful President’s Circle Award during Keep America Beautiful’s 2014 National Conference, which recently took place in Charlotte, N.C. The President’s Circle Award recognizes exemplary performance made by certified affiliates of the national nonprofit in building and sustaining vibrant communities.

 In qualifying for a President’s Circle Award, Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful has met Keep America Beautiful’s standards of merit by conducting an annual Community Appearance Index, calculating the affiliate’s cost/benefit ratio, and administering activities in the areas of litter prevention, recycling and waste reduction, and beautification and community greening.

“One of Keep America Beautiful’s most effective tools is the work of our grassroots network of affiliate organizations, which has an impact on millions of Americans each year,” said Keep America Beautiful President and CEO Jennifer Jehn. “Our affiliates are providing real solutions to local problems caused by litter, graffiti, illegal dumping and other community blight by engaging volunteers of all ages in its effort to create a vibrant community.”

During 2013 Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful held or helped facilitate several events including Christmas Tree Recycling Day, Bulky Waste Roundup, Adopt-a-Mile cleanups, educational sessions for children and adults, Compost Awareness Week, Ecumenical Earth Day, Conasauga Watershed Cleanup, the Eek-O-Friendly Costume Swap, and Community Planting Day.

“I want to thank the Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful board members and volunteers for participating in so many activities throughout the year that make our community a beautiful place to live.” said Executive Director of KDWB, Liz Swafford.  “There’s still room for us to grow and we’re looking for board members and volunteers to join us and make a positive impact in 2014.”  Visit www.KeepDaltonWhitfieldBeautiful.org to register for the KDWB newsletter or call 706-278-5001 to find out how you can participate.

About Keep America Beautiful, Inc.

Keep America Beautiful is the nation’s leading nonprofit that brings people together to build and sustain vibrant communities. With a strong national network of 1,200 affiliates and partners including state recycling organizations, we work with millions of volunteers who take action in their communities. Keep America Beautiful offers programs and engages in public-private partnerships that help create clean, beautiful public places, reduce waste and increase recycling while educating generations of environmental stewards. Through our actions, we help create communities that are socially connected, environmentally healthy and economically sound. For more information, visit kab.org.