Solid Waste & Recycling E-News October 2022

• Did You Know?
• Orange County NC Recycles App
• Shred-A-Thon Fall 2022
• Temporary Recycling Outreach Assistant
• What's in the Cart?
• Don't Pitch Your Pumpkins!

Aluminum foil is not accepted in recycling carts, whether it is clean or dirty. Aluminum foil, along with pie pans and aluminum trays, can be recycled separately in the scrap metal dumpsters at any of the Waste & Recycling Centers. Please throw away aluminum foil if it is not disposed at the Waste & Recycling Centers.

Orange County NC Recycles App

Orange County Solid Waste has a new app called “Orange County NC Recycles” to assist residents with waste disposal and recycling collection information. Through web access and/or the app, residents can enter their home address to receive their recycling collection schedule, find the nearest Waste & Recycling Centers, and learn how to properly dispose of materials.

Residents can also set up reminders of their collection day through text, email, phone notifications, calendar apps, or voice (automated phone call). Reminder options can be configured to include curbside collection day, changes to facility operations and hours due to weather or other circumstances, waste collection delays, and more.
Download the app for free through the Apple Store or Google Play Store, or visit the A-Z Waste & Recycling Guide on our website. 

Shred-A-Thon Fall 2022

Temporary Recycling Outreach Assistant

Orange County Solid Waste Management is seeking Temporary Recycling Outreach Assistants to help with Solid Waste programs and events- especially the Recycling Stars program. The position provides valuable hands-on experience in the community to those interested in environmental studies, waste management techniques, and more. Depending on their experience levels, assistant may help set up and assist residents at County events, or perform and document recycling audits as part of the Recycling Stars Program.

The position offers a flexible work schedule, the majority of which will be in-person. Hours will depend on which projects assistants are assigned to. Some events and presentations may take place on weekends. Work may be performed inside or outside under a variety of weather conditions. Applicants must have a high school degree or GED and six months of related experience. Please visit the Orange County job board for more details and to apply.

What's in the Cart?

A monthly review of the most common and obscure findings in recycling carts.

As part of the Recycling Stars Program, solid waste staff evaluate curbside recycling carts to educate residents on proper recycling. To further educate residents, here are some of the most frequent and some unexpected contaminants that inspectors have found:

• Plastic and paper cups. Single-use, disposable cups – both paper and plastic – cannot be recycled. Please throw them away, along with the lids and straws.
• Dog and cat food bags. Like plastic bags, these bags cannot be recycled in curbside carts either. Please throw them away.
• Rigid plastic. Hard plastic items, such as buckets, toys, stadium cups from sports events, and crates, must be disposed at the Waste & Recycling Centers in the rigid plastic dumpsters. Do not put these in curbside carts!
• Picture frames. Although they are made of glass and wood/paper materials, they are not recyclable materials. Please donate reusable frames to a local thrift store or throw them away.
• Antifreeze, and the jug containing it, are household hazardous waste and must be disposed at the Waste & Recycling Centers! Hazardous waste chemicals and containers pose a fire hazard to recycling trucks and facilities.

Don't Pitch Your Pumpkins!

Are you getting in the fall spirit and buying pumpkins for your front steps? Obviously these decorations don’t last forever, so think before you throw away your jack-o-lantern and gourds! Bring your carved pumpkins and other fall décor made of organic materials to a food waste drop-off site in Orange County. Sites are available at the Eubanks Rd and Walnut Grove Church Rd Waste & Recycling Centers, the Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Eno River Famer’s Markets on Saturdays, and the Chapel Hill Farmer’s Market on Tuesdays as well.

Please remove candles and any other non-compostable decorative materials before disposing. Pumpkins that have been painted are NOT compostable. 

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.