Waste & Recycling E-News February 2022

Did You Know?
Postponed: University Place Drop-Off Site Closure
Introduction to the Solid Waste Master Plan
Orange County Recycling Stars Program
Junk Mail Recycling Pilot

Paper towels (clean, dirty or unbleached) cannot be recycled in Orange County. These products all have short paper fibers, making it difficult to recycle them into paper again.
The best thing to do with paper towels, tissues and napkins is to compost them instead! They can be included in your backyard compost or deposited at the County’s food waste collection sites. Please avoid putting paper towels that were sprayed with toxic chemicals in the compost.

It is important to remember that these cheap and convenient tissue products come from trees. Entire forests are cut down to meet the growing demand for paper products, which leads to forest degradation, habitat disturbance and disruption to Indigenous communities. Instead of tissue products made from virgin fibers, opt for products made with recycled fibers. Tissue products made from recycled fibers, rather than virgin fibers, have a significantly smaller environmental footprint.

Fun Fact: The paper shredded at the County’s Shred-A-Thon events is turned into recycled copy paper, tissue paper, paper towels and other consumer paper products!
Reusable dishcloths and towels are great options for those looking to cut out waste altogether. Swedish dishcloths are far more absorbent than paper towels and are easy to clean and reuse! Also, consider cutting up old t-shirts and fabrics to use as rags.

Postponed: University Place Drop-Off Site Closure

The closing of the University Place drop-off recycling site has been delayed from January 31, 2022 until May 31, 2022.

The property management group has agreed to extend the availability of the site to allow the Solid Waste Department extra time to attempt to find another location for a replacement recycling drop-off site.

Reminder: Residents can use one of our other staffed recycling sites, including the Eubanks Road Waste and Recycling Center in Chapel Hill, for their recycling disposal needs now and after May 31, 2022. To find other 24-hr drop-off sites in the County, visit this page, and for full-service Waste & Recycling Centers, visit this page.

Introduction to the Solid Waste Master Plan

The Orange County Board of Commissioners recently approved a contract for the development of a Solid Waste Master Plan to strive for “Zero Waste” by 2045. For the plan’s purposes, Zero Waste is defined as the reduction of solid waste to nothing, or as close to nothing as possible, by minimizing excess consumption by means of responsible production, consumption, and reuse and maximizing the recovery of material through recycling and composting.

The contract was awarded to GBB, an international solid waste management consulting firm that helps public- and private-sector organizations craft practical, customized and technically sound solutions for complex solid waste management challenges. In addition to GBB, River District Consulting, a public engagement firm with solid waste experience, will participate in the development of the plan.

Over the coming months, more specific information on the goals of the plan and its development will be available on the Orange County Solid Waste website. In addition, GBB, along with River District Consulting, will provide multiple opportunities for public input on the development of the plan. Those opportunities will be publicized in various ways, including in future issues of the e-news, on social media, and the solid waste website. Stay tuned to make your voice and ideas heard.

Orange County Recycling Stars Program

The Solid Waste Department is developing a new program to improve the overall quality and quantity of recyclables collected throughout residential curbside routes. The program will roll out in two stages: Stage 1 focuses on rural curbside and Stage 2 focuses on urban curbside. The program is anticipated to begin in April 2022.

This program involves inspectors looking in recycling carts to assess the materials and check for contamination. The inspectors will either leave a recycling star sticker on carts without contamination or an ‘oops’ tag on carts with contamination. Residents that are consistently recycling properly will be entered in a raffle with the chance to win a prize such as a $50 gift certificate to a local farmer's market! Carts with contamination will not be collected and residents will receive personalized contamination letters along with other educational materials to help them recycle right.

Keep up with this newsletter and the solid waste website for more information on this program and additional ways to help reduce recycling contamination in Orange County.

Junk Mail Recycling Pilot

In December of last year, the Solid Waste Department with the help of a recycling intern, Gabriela Alba, started a junk mail recycling pilot program at four apartment complexes. The purpose of this program is to help increase the amount of junk mail recycled. Most mailbox sites have a trashcan but not a recycling bin, resulting in some residents tossing the mail they do not want in the nearby trashcan.

Small recycling carts were placed near the trashcans at the mailbox sites to provide an easy, convenient option for residents to recycle their mail. The carts were labeled with laminated signs specifying ‘junk mail only’. Once a cart is filled with paper, a staff member from the complex rolls the junk mail cart to the nearest recycling site at the complex to be collected with the other blue recycling carts.

Once the pilot program is completed, other eligible complexes will be able to join the program. If your complex is interested in participating, email klevau@orangecountync.gov for more information.

Follow Us On Social Media!

Follow our social media pages for important updates on waste and recycling programs in the County, upcoming events & webinars, answers to FAQ’s, facilities schedule changes (due to holidays or inclement weather) and other important recycling news you can use!

@ocncsolidwaste on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook

Can't Get Enough Trash Talk?

Listen to OC Solid Waste Representatives the second Tuesday of each month from 8:15 am to 8:45 am on the ‘3-D News’ on local radio WHUP 104.7 FM, over the air and streaming online. Visit this link to listen online. If you missed the show, you can listen online since shows are archived for a month after airing.