Several Montezuma County Schools along with the Four Corners Recycling Initiative are joining forces for a one-day plastic recycling drive at Lifeway Baptist Church in Cortez on Mar. 13, in large part to test public interest in offering plastics recycling on a regular basis.
“The reason behind the drive is three-pronged,” explained Southwest Open School teacher and Four Corners Recycling Initiative Board member Casey Simpson. “We want to gauge interest, raise awareness, and show the county that there is a real need for this.”
Currently, Montezuma County offers recycling of glass, aluminum, tin and paper. Plastic recycling, however, currently isn’t offered.
According to Environmental Protection Agency data, the United States generated almost 14 million tons of plastics as containers and packaging, about 11 million tons as durable goods such as appliances, and almost 7 million tons as nondurable goods, such as plates and cups. However, 9 percent of the total plastic waste generated in 2012 was recovered for recycling.
Aside from the obvious environmental benefits of diverting plastic from the landfill, there is also a financial benefit. Simpson says there is a commodity buyer in Albuquerque that the Recycling Initiative could sell the separated and baled plastic for a break-even rate, meaning it wouldn’t cost the county or Recycling Initiative anything extra to process it and truck it over to the buyer. Recyclable plastic could garner $95 per ton compared to a $3 per ton that cardboard brings in.
Since Montezuma Re-1 and Dolores Schools both received LEED gold-rated certification and BEST grants from the state for their new school facilities, a grant requirement is the establishment of a regular plastic recycling program. Since the schools already have in-house collection systems, it makes sense to look at processing options, Simpson explained.
The goal for the one-day drive is to collect 1300 lbs. of plastic recyclables, and SWOS along has already collected half that amount. In addition to a test of public interest, the drive will also be a test for the upgraded baler because it has never worked with such a heavy amount of plastic.
“They’ve never baled plastic alone before, this test bale will let us know if the whether the compactor is even capable,” he noted.
Residents interested in contributing to the effort can drop off recyclable plastics on Mar. 13 at Lifeway Baptist Church, 601 North Dolores Road in Cortez or send plastics to school with their SWOS, M-CHS or Dolores Schools students.