In order to handle the increase in recycling, the county will open its fourth recycling center, in Goshen, as soon as Dominion Power hooks up the electricity.

The compactor is ready to go. "We’re excited," said Rockbridge County Recycling Coordinator Kim Thompson.

Despite the growth, the county is still short of the state requirement of 25 percent, but Thompson said she is confident that the county will hit its mark.

Rockbridge County began recycling in 1989. Every day, the centers see hundreds cars dropping off mixed paper, newspaper, corrugated cardboard, aluminum and tin, and plastics. Some recycling operations will take only certain types of plastics, but Rockbridge County takes all major types - "number 1" through "number 7."

At the College Square center in Lexington, employee Victoria Wade said that the center gets around 200 cars a day. Since she began working at the center about a year ago, she has seen how the numbers fluctuate according to the weather.

"Since it’s been colder, [recycling in the county has] definitely decreased," she said.

Still, she said she has seen an increase overall in the amount of recyclables the center handles.

Thompson attributed the growth in recycling to increased community awareness. Thompson and her assistant, Stephen Lucas, visit local elementary and middle schools as well as civic organizations to give presentations on the benefits of recycling.

According to Thompson, the talks at civic groups "help a lot." Additionally, the presentations at local schools help reach the 30-something age group through their children.

"The key with recycling is to make [people] more aware," she said.

Every spring, the county pairs up with the schools to hold a poster contest to promote recycling. Kindergarteners through third-graders compete in a coloring contest; fourth, fifth, and sixth graders design posters; and seventh and eighth graders write essays. The entries are then judged and the winners awarded prizes.

"The kids look forward to [the contest] every year," Thompson said. "Without the kids, we wouldn’t be growing the way we’re growing."

One year, Thompson organized a "paper for pizza" drive. The schools collected mixed paper for recycling, and all won a pizza party.

During the program, she collected more than one ton at a time. "The amount of paper was just astronomical," Thompson said.

The "paper for pizza" drive has not been repeated because it was too labor-intensive, she said.

In the future, Thompson would like to increase the amount of recycling in order to surpass the state’s mandated 25 percent recycled rate. She wants to see a rate of 30 to 40 percent.

Additionally, she plans to increase educational programs, and possibly move them into the high schools.

In high school, the kids aren’t getting the message, she said. "[It’s like] okay, we taught you [in middle school], now forget it."

Rockbridge County's Guide to Recycling
 

Recycling Facts

• Recycling saves resources.
• Recycling saves energy.
• Recycling reduces the size of disposal sites.
• Recycling reduces litter.
• Recycling takes little time.
• You can make 20 recycled aluminum cans with energy it takes to make one new aluminum can.
• There are approximately 23 cans to one pound of aluminum.
• It takes 3 tons of recycle newspaper to make on ton of paper.
• Paper made from waste papers instead of virgin wood requires 61% less water and results in 70% fewer air pollutants.
• A foot of newspaper tightly twined = 30 pounds.
• Nature can recycle a tin can to dust in 100 years, and an aluminum can in 500 years, but a glass bottle takes one million years.

Produced by Washington and Lee journalism students.

Lead supervisor:      Prof. Claudette Artwick

Reporting supervisors:

Prof. Doug Cumming

Prof. Phylissa Mitchell

Prof. Brian Richardson

Technical supervisor:  Michael Todd