DARKE COUNTY — “[It’s] just another message we are pushing right now,” wrote Molly Yeager Broadwater, Corporate Communications Manager with Rumpke Waste and Recycling Center on Monday.
As individuals stock up on various items while social distancing for COVID-19, that cardboard box that was delivered to your doorstep with essentials for your home — it’s made from recycled boxes.
The toilet paper that you are rationing out to each family member — it’s made from recycled office paper.
While families hunker down at home, Rumpke reminds residents that it is still important to practice good recycling habits.
“Paper mills are working around the clock to fulfill orders for Amazon and other outlets,” said Rumpke Director of Recycling Steve Sargent in a press release. “We’ve had mills contact us to secure additional paper.”
But a key to making sure your paper and other items can be recycled into useful new items is to follow Rumpke’s recycling guidelines.
“While the mills are asking for paper – they still have very stringent requirements,” continued Sargent. “It’s important to empty everything from cardboard and paperboard boxes – like pasta boxes — before putting them in recycling containers. It is also important to leave out items like napkins, tissues, toilet paper, and paper cups. But it isn’t just paper we should recycle. We know there are a lot of wine bottles, steel food cans, and plastic bottles that are being emptied currently – and we need those too. ”
As previously reported, it’s all about making one’s recycling efforts count with Rumpke accepting the following items in its recycling program:
- Cardboard boxes
- Paperboard
- Office paper
- Junk mail and envelopes
- Cartons (milk and juice – not eggs)
- Glass bottles and jars
- Plastic bottles and jugs
- Aluminum cans
- Steel cans
Another key is to have all material placed into recycling containers loose, not enclosed in plastic bags.
An interview with Broadwater in January showcased when the bags reach the Material Recovery Facility (MRF) in St. Bernard, not far from Cincinnati, each one must be broke open by hand. It is a time-consuming endeavor, as workers “try to shake out all that material.”
Plastic bags cause other difficulties, including hours dedicated to removing those caught in the machinery. Some of those bags include one-use plastic shopping bags which cannot be recycled because end-users request only those in clean, dry, and like-new condition, something Rumpke cannot guarantee. At least, not when pulling them out of machinery or dumping potential containments out of them.
Broadwater encourages those with questions to contact Rumpke or to visit their website for a full list of recyclable items at www.rumpke.com
The Greenville Transfer Station has 100 employees onsite from welders to mechanics, drivers to sales, and administration at their location on Jaysville-St. Johns Road. They have been in the community for 30 years.
