Local Schools Participate in Nationwide School Recycling Contest

Keep America Beautiful, Inc., the nation’s largest volunteer-based community action and education organization, has announced the winners of “Recycle-Bowl”, the first comprehensive nationwide recycling competition for elementary-, middle- and high-school students.  65 schools in Georgia participated at the state level recycling as much as possible during the weeks of October 15 to November 15, 2013.   At the state level, two local schools placed in the Top 5 in Georgia taking second, and third place.

Public and private schools in Whitfield County currently participate in Target Recycling at School, a free recycling collection service offered by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority.  With the assistance of the DWSWA’s recycling center, 36 local schools were registered for the 3rd annual nationwide competition.  Each school received a kit to help promote recycling in their school with posters and educational activities. 

At the end of the competition period the weights of the recyclables collected at each school were reported to Recycle-Bowl staff.  The national winner was Foothill Elementary School in Pittsburg, California.  A full list of statewide winners can be found at www.Recycle-Bowl.org.  Below are the top five schools in the state of Georgia for Recycle-Bowl 2013:

Georgia’s Top 5 Recycle-Bowl Competitors:

1. Cass Middle School, Cartersville, GA

2. New Hope Middle School, Dalton, GA

3. Pleasant Grove Elementary, Dalton, GA

4. Robert Shaw Traditional Theme School, Scottdate, GA

5. Brighten Academy, Douglasville, GA

The total amount of school only recyclables recovered nationwide during the 2013 competition added up to 6.4 million pounds, which in turn prevented the release of nearly 8,913 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCE). In real-world terms, this reduction in greenhouse gases is equivalent to the annual emissions from 473 passenger cars.

 “Inspiring young people to recycle at school reinforces the importance of recycling everywhere, whether at home or on the go,” said Jennifer Jehn, president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful. “We are also pleased that so many schools use the competition to improve existing recycling programs or develop new ones that didn’t exist prior to their participation.”

Delayed Opening, Thursday, January 30, 2014

The Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority has announced a delayed opening of 9:00 am for Thursday, January 30, 2014 due to inclement weather at the Whitfield County Landfill and Convenience Centers.  

Locations include the Old Dixie Landfill & Convenience Center, McGaughey Chapel Convenience Center, Westside Convenience Center, and the M.L. King Convenience Center.  

** If traveling to the Old Dixie Hwy. location in the morning, please use George Brock Rd. **

For more information call the main office at 706-277-2545.  For maps and directions to each site visit the Directions page on this site.

CLOSED on Wednesday, January 29, 2014

All Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority locations will be closed on Wednesday, January 29, 2014 due to inclement weather.  Locations include the Old Dixie Hwy. Landfill & Convenience Center, McGaughey Chapel Convenience Center, Westside Convenience Center, and the M.L. King Convenience Center.  For maps and directions to each site visit our Convenience Center page.  For more information call the main office at 706-277-2545. 

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful Receives Inaugural Governor’s Circle Recognition Award

Representatives from Keep America Beautiful affiliates from across the state of Georgia gathered at the State Capitol to receive the inaugural Governor's Circle Recognition Award. 

Atlanta, GA – Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful received the Governor’s Circle Award on December 9, 2013. These inaugural, statewide awards were presented by Gov. Nathan Deal at the State Capitol as part of the Keep Georgia Beautiful Fall Conference.

Created by the Keep Georgia Beautiful Foundation in honor of its 35th Anniversary; The Governor’s Circle Award recognizes exemplary performance by certified affiliates in reducing litter, minimizing waste and greening local communities. To qualify for the Governor’s Circle Award, affiliates must be in good standing with Keep America Beautiful; conducting an annual Litter Index, calculating the affiliate’s cost/benefit ratio and engaging volunteers to take greater responsibility for their community environment. Additionally, the affiliate must be an active member of the Georgia network.

“The affiliates receiving the Governor’s Circle Award represent the best of community improvement efforts”, said Sarah Visser, Executive Director of the Keep Georgia Beautiful Foundation, “they are doing the hard work every day to keep their communities economically vibrant and environmentally sustainable”.

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, also known as the Clean and Beautiful Commission, was established in 1989 and became an affiliate in 1991.  Board members and volunteers focus on activities that promote litter prevention, beautification, waste reduction, and recycling.  Annual events include Christmas Tree and Electronics Recycling in January, Community Planting Day, Adopt-a-Mile cleanups, participation in local Earth Day events, and the Conasauga Watershed Cleanup, among others.

“I would like to thank all of our amazing board members, volunteers, and community partners for making the work of Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful possible.” said Liz Swafford, Executive Director of Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful.  “With their commitment and support our local affiliate has continued to grow and expand it’s range of activities and continue to make a positive impact in the community.”

Those interested in volunteering should visit www.keepdaltonwhitfieldbeautiful.org, or call 706-226-6211. 

Georgia is the first state in the Keep America Beautiful (KAB) network to create a Governor’s Circle Award modeled on KAB’s national good standing designation.

About Keep Georgia Beautiful Foundation (KGBF):  Created in 1978 by Governor George Busbee, Keep Georgia Beautiful (KGB), became the first state affiliate of Keep America Beautiful.  In 2011, the Keep Georgia Beautiful program merged with the Keep Georgia Beautiful Foundation, Inc. which was created in 1985 to promote private sector financial support for worthwhile educational programs that enhance the environment and the quality of life in Georgia. KGBF coordinates a number of environmental efforts including the Great American Cleanup™ and the statewide Bring One for the Chipper Christmas tree recycling program.  The Foundation is based on a fundamental premise that the environmental interests of the state of Georgia and the people who live here are best served when public and private interests work hand-in-hand to achieve common goals. Our connections with the public and private sectors aid us in our mission to support local Keep Georgia Beautiful affiliates as they build and sustainable communities through litter prevention, waste reduction, recycling, water resource management and community greening.  For more information about the KGB Foundation, please visit www.keepgeorgiabeautiful.org or call the office at (404) 679-4910.

# # #

Media inquiries may be directed to Keep Georgia Beautiful Foundation, Executive Director, Sarah Visser at (404) 679-4910 (office) or sarah.visser@kgbf.org. {C}

Delayed Opening 10 AM on Monday, January 6

The Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority has announced a delayed opening of 10:00 am for Monday, January 6, 2014 due to inclement weather at the Whitfield County  Landfill and Convenience Centers.  Locations include the Old Dixie Landfill & Convenience Center, McGaughey Chapel Convenience Center, Westside Convenience Center, and the M.L. King Convenience Center.  For more information call the main office at 706-277-2545.