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Orange Village sets example for recycling
Orange Village sets example for recycling
By SALI McSHERRY
Orange has become a model for other communities when it comes to recycling, according to village officials.
Since the inception in fall 2008 of new 64-gallon containers offered to residents who can commingle plastic, aluminum and paper, recycling totals have increased by over 10 percent, Village Council President Daniel Brown said.
Over the past 1 1/2 years, the telephone has been ringing with questions from service directors and mayors about how to implement similar programs in their communities, Mr. Brown said. "My hope is that all the communities will think about doing it."
The recycling program promotes sustainability, the education of the next generation and a cleaner village, he said.
This past school year, Orange High School's environmental club has been moving full steam ahead with a recycling program that has taken its cue from Orange Village, co-adviser and teacher John Sangdahl said.
Students have been asked to reuse their plastic water bottles using a new hydration station in the cafeteria, recycle paper bags and lunch trays that students can rinse in a sink in the cafeteria. The district is paying less for trash to be hauled to a landfill and also is helping to make the planet healthier, Orange High School student Clair Sulerzyski said.
Beyond the obvious benefit of helping the environment, Orange Village's recycling program saves the village money, Mr. Brown said, and that's something everyone can relate to.
During the first two months into the recycling program, Orange residents doubled the amount of solid waste recycled, about 34 percent, Mr. Brown said. Prior to the new commingling recyclable program, residents recycled between 16 percent and 18 percent on average through the village's curb-side recycling program in which the materials had to be separated, he said. Orange saves over $11,000 a year with the new program and plans to pay off the cost of the 64-gallon blue recycling carts provided to about 1,500 household within five years, Mr. Brown said. The carts cost the village about $65,000.
Recycling also is a great way to hedge against potential rising fuel costs and the limitations of landfill space, Mr. Brown said. And who knows, he said, the recycling companies could start paying for recyclable materials in the future.
Orange, in cooperation with Cuyahoga County, continues to offer periodic drop-off recycling for telephone books, household hazardous waste, scrap tires, old computers and cellular telephones. Through July, old phones can be taken to the village service department at 4160 Lander Road. Between Aug. 2 and Aug. 31 computer equipment will be accepted between 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the service department.
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