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City, Stafford better than state average at recycling BUSINESS RECYCLING

December 26, 2007 12:35 am

By RUSTY DENNEN

Fredericksburg and Stafford County are doing a better-than-average job of recycling municipal wastes, according to a state report.

The annual report, released by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, found that the localities, which operate jointly, recycle 40.4 percent of waste generated.

The state average is 38.4 percent.

Stafford and Fredericksburg handle waste and recycling efforts through the Rappahannock Regional Solid Waste Management Board.

Hampton Roads, according to the report, led the state last year, recycling 51 percent of waste. The rural Northern Shenandoah Valley was lowest, at 29 percent.

State law requires that most localities or regional waste management operations recycle at least 25 percent of waste generated. Rural areas and those with high unemployment must recycle at least 15 percent.

"The increase in recycling and the number of localities meeting the recycling rates reflects the continued support by Virginians for recycling in their communities," DEQ Director David K. Paylor said.

Julie May, an analyst for the Rappahannock Regional Solid Waste Management Board, says making the process known--and convenient--is critical.

"It's voluntary, so we depend upon people to be good stewards of the environment, and we try to make it as easy as possible," she said.

Stafford and the city have a "double stream" recycling program so that all paper products--office supplies, cardboard, newspapers, magazines--can be dropped into one bin. The same is true for items such as aluminum, glass, plastics and steel cans. They don't have to be separated first.

In addition to the regional landfill on Eskimo Hill Road in central Stafford and the Belman Road Recycling Center in Fredericksburg, there are eight drop-off sites in the two localities.

Last year, about 27,000 tons of home refuse was recycled. Businesses accounted for 46,000 tons.

"Each year the tonnage is going up," May said.

Recycle America, a subsidiary of Waste Management Inc., and SP Recycling Corp. pick up and sort materials and then sell them to end users.

Jimmy Brooks, recycling operations manager in Spotsylvania County, says recycling is growing at collection centers and that the trend is good for residents and the county.

"All the paper products do great. Scrap metals do really great," he said. With the exception of some hard-to-recycle plastics, "I don't know of any [materials] that are not doing well."

The county, according to the report, recycled 31 percent of its waste--about 38,862 tons--last year.

Spotsylvania has recycling boxes at many of its collection sites. There, residents drop off aluminum, glass, newspaper and magazines, and cardboard in separate bins. Tanks are provided to recover used motor oil.

The main recycling hub at Chancellor takes the heftier items such as appliances, lumber, scrap metals and batteries.

Twice a year the county collects hazardous and toxic materials such as paint, pesticides and acids. Stafford and Fredericksburg also have the special collections, which include used electronic equipment that can contain toxic materials.

Brooks says that demographics and education play a role in the success of recycling programs.

"We do increased education in schools, so the younger generations are getting involved," he said, noting that adults 18 to 35 tend to be the most tuned in to recycling.

"Also, we have people moving into the county from other states where they have mandatory recycling," he said, and they carry on with it here.

Still, "A lot of people don't want to recycle. Maybe it takes too much time for them, but I'm just guessing."

While recycling brings in some extra revenue, the main aim is to preserve landfill space. For every cubic yard of material that doesn't wind up at the landfill, the county estimates it saves $16.51.