Dr. Karen Bell

Keep Liberty Beautiful

I have been asked about recycling centers and what can be done until the next Recycle It! Fairs. Keep Liberty Beautiful has quarterly recycling fairs and shred days four times yearly. By doing these fairs, we hope this makes recycling and eliminating some household hazardous items easy for our community. Our next Recycle It! Fairs are scheduled for November 18, 2023, at the Liberty County Community Complex in Midway and at the Walthourville City Hall.

Here in Liberty County, you can recycle every day. You can use the recycling centers, or some Liberty County and Fort Stewart homes have curbside recycling. The most important thing is that we recycle! When it comes to recycling, it’s super important to know precisely what and how to recycle. Once you add a contaminated item to a recycling bin, it can ruin the entire batch. This will result in sending it to the landfill instead of the recycling center. And, just like that, all your good recycling intentions go to waste.

Here are some excellent tips on doing your recycling:

• Package deliveries: It’s important to know that the only thing recyclable from most packages is the cardboard box itself. Parcels come with a lot of tape, bubble wrap, plastic air bags, cellophane wrapping, and foam peanuts to keep your items safe during transport. Unfortunately, none of these materials belongs in your recycle bin. Save these items for your packing needs or place them in your waste bin.

• Pizza boxes: Pizza boxes are made of recyclable cardboard but are no longer recyclable once the package is soiled with cheese and grease. Dirty pizza boxes create a more significant problem when placed in recycling bins because they contaminate clean recyclables.

Often, the bottom is soiled with grease and food while the top remains clean. Tear the clean part off the box and place it in your recycling bin because only clean cardboard can be made into new paper. As for the other soiled half, it goes in your waste bin.

• Paper plates, napkins and paper towels:

Like pizza boxes, these items are not recyclable when soiled with food and liquid. When it comes to these items, opt for the real thing whenever possible, but go for biodegradable when that’s not an option.

• Plastic bottles: Americans buy 50 billion plastic water bottles yearly, yet only one of every four is recycled. This is a huge miss because those bottles are in high demand to be made into everyday products like athletic clothing, carpets, and more — so recycle, recycle, recycle!

• Aluminum cans: Cans are recyclable! Aluminum is forever recyclable and provides unrivaled benefits for sustainability. It’s important to rinse and shake them dry first so they don’t ruin cardboard and paper in the bin.

When recycling, keep the materials as clean and dry as possible.

The following is a list of the convenience centers open Monday– Saturday, 6:30 a.m.– 6:30 p.m., and Sunday, 1–5 p.m.:

• 344 Fort Morris Road (East End Convenience Center)

• 50 Isle of Wight Road (Midway Area, U.S. 84 and Isle of Wight Road)

• 619 J.V. Road (West Side of Hinesville)

• 64 Left Field Road (U.S. 84 at Miller Park Recreation Area)

• 836 Limerick Road (Old Landfill Entrance near Lake George)

• 156 Pate Rogers Road (Fleming Area, behind “Short Cut” Convenience Store)

• 25 South Dairy Road (Highway 196 West, south of Gum Branch) The following recycling centers are open 24 hours:

• 129 Sandy Run Road (Off U.S. 84, at the Enmark Station)

• 941 E.G. Miles Parkway (Highway 196 West, at the Training Center)

• 4000 South Coastal Highway (U.S. 17 just north of Riceboro) These recyclable items are collected at all our recycling centers:

• Plastics No.1 — Plastic water and beverage bottles

• Plastics No. 2 — Water and milk jugs

•Mixed plastics No. 3 through No. 7 — All other plastic items with the recyclable symbols 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7

• Aluminum — Aluminum beverage cans

• Cardboard — Corrugated cardboard boxes

• Steel or tin cans — Food and soup cans

• Glass Bottles — Beverage and food containers Visit the KLB website for more information: www.keeplibertybeautiful. org. You can also contact us at Keep Liberty Beautiful by phone at (912) 880-4888 or by email at klcb@libertycountyga. com. The countywide Rivers A live Cleanup is on October 28. Please join us.