TIS THE SEASON TO RECYCLE

Did you know that Americans throw away 25% more trash during the Thanksgiving to New Year’s holiday period than any other time of the year? This extra waste amounts to about 25 million tons of garbage. What can you do to help reduce this holiday waste?

Packaging is the largest component of this increased trash and our local recycling programs offer recycling for all of your paper packaging - shipping boxes and gift boxes as well as wrapping paper. The second largest source of this increased trash comes from all the holiday meals and various celebrations that happen from late November through New Year’s. Once again, our community is fortunate to have recycling programs that will take most of the stuff generated here – aluminum cans, aluminum foil, aluminum baking dishes, steel food cans, glass bottles and jars and the #1 and #2 plastic bottles and containers (please rinse). And then there are all those Christmas trees that looked great for a while and then get thrown out. We also have good recycling programs for those trees.

Here are some schedules that will help you recycle the most you can this holiday season:

• Curbside - will pick up your boxes (corrugated and paperboard – please keep separate from your other recyclables) at the curb on Monday the 27^th, Tuesday the 28^th, Thursday the 30^th and the regular pick up days the next week after New Year’s Day. They will also pick up your “real” Christmas trees on your regular yard waste day for the 2 weeks after Christmas – call 236-4580 for more information.
• Floyd County Remote Sites – always take recyclables during their normal hours of operation and will accept your “real” Christmas trees for 2 weeks after Christmas – call 236-2495 for more information
• The Recycling Center will accept your boxes all day every day, along with your wrapping paper and other recyclables, however, the Recycling Center does not take Christmas trees at any time. We will be closed Thursday the 23^rd, Friday the 24^th, Saturday the 25^th and Sunday the 26^th. We will be placing bales out front to extend the drop off area for all the extra recyclables that come in during this time. If you will please, please, please put all of your recyclables into bags (or boxes) it will not only take up less space, it will also allow us to bring the stuff inside the building much faster when we get back to work. Loose material takes 2 to 3 times longer to pick up and sort properly.
• Keep Rome/Floyd Beautiful - will accept Christmas trees for chipping on Saturday, January 8^th , 2005 at the Home Depot parking lot. They will be giving out tree saplings while supplies last – call 236-4456 for more information

Happy Holidays and thanks for Recycling.