2013_FALL newsletter.indd

Recycling not only
saves you money
today by reducing your
garbage bill, but it
conserves important
resources for your
children’s future.
Energy use, air
pollution, water
pollution and damage
to the systems that
clean our air are all
greatly reduced when
manufacturers can use our
old paper, cans and glass in their new products.
REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE
Schools in Lane County can receive FREE
education services (tours, visiting expert,
assemblies, classroom activities) by calling
BRING Recycling 541-746-3023.
Become a
Master Recycler
Do you live in a rural community? The Master Recycler
Program has trained hundreds of community members.
Classes have been held in Cottage Grove, Florence,
Junction City and Creswell.
Attend tours and
presentations by
dozens of local
recycling experts.
In just 9 weeks you can:




Learn what is recyclable and why.
Tour our thriving reuse industry.
Share your knowledge and inspire
your community.
This class is FREE to those who volunteer in their
community. Class begins April 1, 2014.
If you would like to attend this free class close
to home, we need to hear from you! The next
rural class will be held in the community with the most
applications submitted by December 31, 2013 (a minimum
of 10 applicants are needed to hold a class).
Apply today!
For application/information go to:
www.lanecounty.org/masterrecyclers,
or call 541-682-2059.
Why Pay Garbage Rate...
When nature can turn your food
and yard waste into soil?
FREE Composting
Classes
Compost your food scraps and yard debris! Make
fertilizer for FREE. Learn how at one of these free
compost classes. Open to the public, they are all
held at active compost demonstration sites from
10am – noon. Other great compost information and discounted
bins are available at: www.lanecounty.org/compost






Sept. 14 - Transition Garden – 905 Flamingo, Springfield
Sept. 28 - River House – 301 N. Adams, Eugene (behind house)
Oct. 5 - BRING Recycling – 4446 Franklin Blvd., Glenwood
Oct. 26 - GrassRoots Garden –1465 Coburg Rd. (behind church)
Nov. 2 - Transition Garden – 905 Flamingo, Springfield
Nov. 16 - River House – 301 N. Adams, Eugene (behind house)
The Earth Machine
from BRING Recycling ($65) makes a neat
and tidy container for compost. Mix grass
trimmings and leaves (food scraps too if
rodent-proof, 1/4” minus hardware cloth
is used), keep moist, and let nature take its
course, making a rich mulch in 3-6 months.
Don’t compost meat, bones, fish, dairy
products, or grease.
The Worm Box
turns food scraps into fertilizer and is perfect
for garage, kitchen or outside use. Only $42
(plus shipping) with Lane County zip code.
Go to: www.lancounty.org/compost
for ordering info, a list of local worm retailers
and information on how to keep the worms
Worm Bin Workshops: $40
HAZARDOUS
WASTE
ROUND UPS
Fall 2013
Marcola
Saturday, September 7 • 9-2
At the Marcola fire station
Florence
Friday, October 18 • 12-5 and
Saturday, October 19 • 8-2
At the Florence transfer site
Veneta
Saturday, November 2 • 8-2
At the Lane County road
maintance shop
WHAT TO BRING:
Car care items, arts and crafts,
cleaning chemicals, lawn, garden,
woodworking, painting, and just
about any other chemical products.
(Limit of 35 gallons total;
leave in original containers.)
DON’T BRING:
Empty containers, drums, asbestos,
explosives, or electronics.
For information about disposing these
items, call: 541-682-3828.
BUSINESSES
must pre-register by phone
by calling 541-682-4120.
We do serve households from
outside Lane County.
COVER your load!
It’s the law.
Taught by OSU Extension Service
Compost Specialists
Sunday Oct. 20, 2pm – 4pm, Location TBA
Workshop participants will receive: One pre-assembled worm bin,
worms, plus bedding mix, 1½ hours of instructions, handouts and
follow-up support—all for $40.
Pre-register in person or by mail by 5pm on Oct. 15 @
783 Grant Street, Eugene, OR 97402, or call 541-344-5859.
If your load is not properly
covered, your garbage rate
could double.
Waste Bustin’ Back to School Ideas
Tips That Save Money
Remember, prepackaged prepared lunch
foods cost more up
front and the packaging is rarely recyclable.
Have a clothingswap
at your school or
with friends and
neighbors. It’s super
fun!
When purchasing
new school supplies
look for recycled
content. Can’t
find any? Ask your favorite
stores to stock recycled goods.
Shop for used school clothes, sports
equipment and supplies. Shop at reuse
stores that help others with needed
services to local families. NextStep and
St Vincent de Paul are some examples.

Avoid single-serve packaged items.
Purchase food in bulk and fill
reusable portion containers.
 Do you use a cloth napkin at
dinner? Why not pack one in
your lunch box?

DIY ice pack: Rinse and save a small
beverage bottle. Fill with water and
freeze overnight. Use as an ice pack
for your lunch box and drink the cold
water!
Tons of low-cost art supplies,
fabric scraps, mat boards and school supplies.
MECCA is right next door to the Eugene train station.
Drop in and visit the Saturday Kids workshops.
www.materials-exchange.org • phone: (541)302-1810
Check up front in the phone book
(look for the BROWN PAGES right
behind the maps) for hours and
information any time you need it.
Or go to:
www.lanecounty.org/recycle
Material Preparation for Recovered Items WITH A FEE
Materials
Accepted
Preparation
Fee
Appliances:
***NOT accepted
Sharps Creek ***
Refrigerators, air conditioners,
freezers, & heat pumps.
All units that contain Freon.
No commercial units.
Remove any food.
Do not cut cords or
drain Freon.
$15 each.
Concrete
Glenwood Only.
Grocery cart-sized chunks or $10 per cubic yard.
smaller are recommended.
Mattresses
Mattresses &
box springs
(Glenwood Only).
Clean & dry.
$9 for any single mattress
or twin-sized pair. $15.50
for any other sized pair.
Propane tanks
***Not accepted
at Sharps Creek***
Propane & disposable helium
Only. (No other compression
tanks).
Maximum size 10 gal.
Camping size free.
Up to 10 gal: $4.
Camping 1/2 gal.—free.
Tires
Passenger Tires only.
Maximum 22 inch diameter
(All tires measured at rim).
No commercial quantities
(above 10) and no commercial purpose tires.
Up to 17” tire: $2, with
rim: $3; 17”-22” tire: $6,
with rim: $10.
Wood waste
Glenwood, Cottage Grove,
and Florence ONLY.
No railroad ties. No
hardware larger than your
thumb. No foam core,
Formica™, or plastic.
3 cans-3 cu. yd: $13.50
Over 3 cu. yd: $7 per yd.
Commercial only: $62
per ton.
Yard debris
Glenwood, Cottage Grove,
and Florence ONLY.
No garbage or plastic bags. Same as wood waste.
(Grass, brush leaves, garden
debris, limbs up to 20 diam)
(subject to change)
G et
FALL 2013
Why Recycle?
your $9 disp
See details inside
osa
l
Lane County’s
discount
A guide to reducing and preventing waste in Lane County
Some Recycling
UPDATES!
Styrofoam
In July, St.Vincent de Paul
suspended collection of Styrofoam
because their machine went down.
But, NOW their machine is back
up and running and they are accepting
Styrofoam again! Questions call: 541-687-5820.
Cushion Foam IS Recyclable
St.Vincent de Paul has informed us that they
DO want the soft foam from couch cushions
and pads. Before dumping that couch or chair,
please stop by their collection truck and offer
them the cushions!
Plastic Plant Pots & Trays
and Miscellaneous Mixed
Plastics
In May, Chinese ports began
enforcing stringent standards
regarding mixed plastics
recycling. Because of this change,
our recycler (International Paper)
stopped accepting plant pots that
they had been shipping to China. So at this time
we cannot accept plastic plant pots & trays for
recycling.
Additionally, International Paper had to close
down their collection of mixed miscellaneous
plastics in the parking lot next door to our
Glenwood transfer site. Since we do not know
of anyone else collecting and recycling these
items from residential customers, please keep
REDUCE, REUSE and RECYCLE in mind!
Business quantities of specific plastic types may
still be recyclable–just the public drop-off has
closed. For information about this and other
recycling options, contact: Lane County Waste
Reduction Specialist, 541-682-4339.
There are NO CHANGES to the bottle,
tub and jug collections at Lane County
Transfer Sites at this time.
Winter Hours Begin Oct. 1st
Winter hours will be in effect from October 1 through
March 31. Not all sites’ hours change. Check the front of
your DEX phone book or call 541-682-4120.
Oakridge ALERT!
Effective October 1, 2013, Oakridge joins the list of sites
where winter hours change to 9am to 5pm.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why does it cost $15 for my old freezer when
the thing doesn’t have Freon in it?
A: It is a federal law that all disposed Freon-containing
appliances must go through a certified gas capture
process. If an exception were made for items that customers say do not have Freon, it might tempt more people to
cut the Freon lines—which is in fact illegal.
Q: Why does the garbage price double when I go
over 3 cubic yards?
A: The $9 (up to ½ cubic yard) and $15.50 (up to 3 cubic
yards) flat fees for garbage are designed to serve our
residential customers disposing of daily household trash. This presumes residents
would not want to let garbage sit around for more than a month. Over 3 cubic
yards is $8 per cubic yard and corresponds more directly to the commercial rate of
$67 per ton. A line had to be drawn somewhere, and this was felt to be a reasonable way to serve residents and businesses fairly.
Q: Why do plastic containers still have the numbers on them if we don’t
use them to identify whether it’s recyclable?
A: The number markings tell us what type of plastic a container is made of.
The numbers are not, and never were, an indication that something is recyclable.
Whether the container is recyclable depends on whether there is a company willing
to take the containers back and make them into something new again. Here in Lane
County, we’ve found a company that will take “all bottles, tubs, and jugs” regardless
of number. But we have not been able to find someone who will take other shapes
of plastics–so we encourage people to focus on the shape, not the number. Just
because we don’t need to use the numbers here, doesn’t mean they aren’t useful in
other recycling programs across the country and around the world.
Please spread the word, the recycling symbol and number
on a plastic container is not, and never was, an indication
that something IS recyclable. It’s just telling us what type of
plastic the container is made from.
lids
Pyrex®
light
bulbs
FOOD PAPERS of any kind:
No plates, cups, napkins, to-go
boxes, frozen food boxes, etc.
• contaminants (oil, fuel, etc.)
aluminized plastic bags
Newspaper
Electronic Waste
• commercial or
industrial batteries
• alkaline batteries made
after 1996 Sizes AAA-D
(okay to toss in garbage)
Maximum
7 items
per visit
NO
•
•
•
•
•
•
contaminants
business or farm collection
brake fluid
gasoline/diesel/solvents
water
vegetable oil
Note: Original empty motor oil
containers are NOT recyclable
Maximum
Maximum
15 gallons
15 gallons
For
For
Residential
Residential
Use only
Use only
containers with secure lid
• Store in unbreakable
or place into drums at rural sites
ALL SITES:
EXCEPT SHARPS CREEK
place on cart
place in drum
commercial or industrial units
floor-standing-copiers
no speakers, reel-to-reel, or packaging
broken or dismantled items must be
contained in bag or box
(fees may apply)
Oil
YES Motor
Oil Filters
•
•
•
•
What
Keyboards, printers, mice
Phones
Stereos
TVs, VCRs, DVDs
Other media electronics
NO
•
•
•
•
•
ONLY ACCEPTED @ COTTAGE GROVE, FLORENCE,
GLENWOOD, OAKRIDGE, VENETA & VIDA
YES
NO
• Alkaline
batteries
older than
1996
• All NiCad,
Lithium,
Silver Oxide
& Mercury
batteries
• All button &
rechargeable
batteries
Household
Batteries
• brown paper bags
• non-paper free samples
or promotions
• plastic wrappers/bags
ALL SITES: EXCEPT
SHARPS CREEK
YES
NO
• All newspaper, ads & paper inserts
ALL SITES
YES
NO DIRTY CONTAINERS
NO
Broken furniture
Painted wood
Particle board
Pallets
Pressure treated wood
Wood with nails or screws
NO
3. What does MECCA stand for?
a) Make Everything Count for Community Action
b) Materials Exchange Center for Community Arts
c) McKenzie Environmental Concerns Community Association
2. The recycle symbol/with number on a plastic item means
that it is recyclable in Lane County.
a) True
b) False
1. Which of these is NOT accepted for recycling?
a) Particle Board
b) Stereo
c) Coffee Cup
• solid white jugs
• small containers
(less than 6oz.)
Bottles, Tubs, Jars & Jugs
• containers less than 6 oz.
• to-go plastic containers
• other shapes
bubble
wrap
fee item, see your fee collector
What
NO
WINNER AT EACH SITE

• material from commercial
sources, clinics, etc.
• other containers such as
glass, milk jugs or
non-rigid containers
• Household sources only
• Make sure lid is secure
• Pack in rigid, red, sealed container
(red or orange laundry detergent
container okay)
Sharps (Needles)
Lancets & other medical sharps
ALL SITES: EXCEPT
SHARPS CREEK
YES
• limbs over 12” diameter
• stumps, and root wads (accepted
in wood waste if dirt-free,
or place in garbage)
• lumber
Cut grass
Brush
Leaves
Limbs under 12” diameter
NO
•
•
•
•
ONLY ACCEPTED @ COTTAGE GROVE, FLORENCE
& GLENWOOD
YES Yard Debris
(unless ALL air is removed)
air bubble
packs
NO
• Turn inside out
& shake to clean
• Completely
remove contents
trash bags
black bags
Plastic Bags
buckets
ALL SITES: EXCEPT SHARPS CREEK
YES
Styrofoam
(place in provided
• compostable (#7 PLA)
separate container)
lids
NO
• Remove caps & lids
• Drip dry
• Rinse
ALL SITES
YES Plastic
(place these in “mixed”plastics)
NO
• Remove caps/lids
• Drip dry
• Rinse
After reading this newsletter, take the quiz and turn it in to your
fee collector by January 15, 2014. All correctly answered quizzes
will be entered to win a $9 disposal credit!
Transfer Site
Phone
Name
(“NATURAL” = SEE-THROUGH)
Hint: All answers to the
questions can be found
in this newsletter.
• other containers or
product types
(No other compression tanks)
ALL SITES:
SITES
fee item, see your fee collector
EXCEPT
SHARPS CREEK
Propane Tanks &
Disposable Helium Tanks
Formica laminated wood
foam core or plastic coated wood
hardware bigger than your thumb
mixed materials
railroad ties
YES
•
•
•
•
•
NO
•
•
•
•
•
•
What
ONLY ACCEPTED @ COTTAGE GROVE, FLORENCE
& GLENWOOD
fee item, see your fee collector
All types & sizes of
auto & other
lead-acid batteries
Auto Batteries
YES Wood Waste
ALL SITES: EXCEPT
SHARPS CREEK
YES
waxed
cardboard
• other paper boards or
packing material
dirty pizza boxes
NO
• Remove contents & flatten boxes
• Look for wavy inner layer:
ALL SITES
& Brown Paper Bags
YES Corrugated Cardboard
frozen food cartons
ALL SITES
Paper Milk Cartons
Milk Jugs
“natural” HDPE bottles / jugs
(PUT IN MIXED PLASTIC IF SEPARATE BIN IS NOT AVAILABLE)
YES
Aseptic Beverage
& Soup Boxes
beverage pouches
NO
• Remove lids
& straws
• Dry
• Rinse
ALL SITES
YES
Take the quiz and
you could WIN $9 off your next disposal load.
Are YOU Waste Wise?
NO
Note: Original empty antifreeze
containers are NOT recyclable
Maximum
15 gallons
For
Residential
Use only
• Secure lid
• Store in unbreakable
containers
ALL SITES: EXCEPT SHARPS CREEK
or pour into drums at rural sites
Place on cart
• refrigerators, freezers,
air conditioners,
water coolers,
heat pumps,
dehumidifiers
YES Antifreeze
liquids
NO
• pressurized containers
(REMOVE GLASS PLATE)
Nails and
small stuff
(use barrel
provided)
• Empty all fluids
• Barrels, containers & tanks
must have ends removed or
fist-size holes visible from
all sides
ALL SITES: EXCEPT SHARPS CREEK
Items that are 75% metal or more
YES Scrap Metal
recycle THESE in Low Grade Paper
NO
fluorescent or bright colored
paper, glossy paper, catalogs
or magazines
COLLECTED SEPARATELY AT GLENWOOD & FLORENCE.
ALL OTHER SITES, PUT IN LOW GRADE PAPER BIN.
YES High Grade Paper
tissue, diapers,
or paper towels
NO
• Open mail & remove
plastic & other
contaminants
• Remove plastic liners
& wrapping
• Flatten cereal boxes
(RURAL SITES HAVE SEPARATE BIN FOR MAGAZINES)
All SITES
YES Low Grade Paper
window glass
drinking
glass
• Labels okay
• Separate by colors:
brown, clear &
green
MUST BE
100%
EMPTY
• Lids on or off
NO
Tin/Steel Cans • Aluminum
Cans & Foil
(SEPARATE TIN/STEEL CANS FROM ALUMINUM)
(USE A MAGNET,
it attracts
• Rinse
tin/steel cans)
All SITES
YES
• Labels okay
• Remove lids
• Rinse
ALL SITES
YES Glass Jars & Bottles
For questions about Recycling @ Transfer Stations call 541-682-4339 or 541-682-4120
Post this Home Recycling Guide