Winter 2016 to 2017 Newsletter from The Bennington County Solid Waste Alliance

Winter 2016 to 2017 Newsletter from the Bennington County Solid Waste Alliance

The Bennington County Solid Waste Alliance (BCSWA) represents the Towns of Arlington, Bennington, Dorset, Glastenbury, Manchester, Pownal, Rupert, Sandgate, Searsburg, Shaftsbury, Stamford, Sunderland and Woodford, with a total, combined population of just over 35,000 people. The Alliance completed and adopted a solid waste implementation plan (or “SWIP”) in December of 2015. The mission of Alliance “…is to reduce the amount of waste disposed in landfills, by incineration or similar means by reducing the amount of waste generated, conserving resources and promoting recycling and reuse.” You can read our SWIP by visiting http://www.bcswavt.org/about-us/.

Fall Activities: This past fall, the Alliance held a household hazardous waste (HHW) event for residents of the 13 towns at the Dorset School in Dorset. The Alliance will hold the next household hazardous waste event for residents and small businesses on Saturday, May 13, 2017 at the Bennington Transfer Station. Details will be posted at the Alliance website at www.bcswavt.org. The Alliance now has a Facebook page as well as the website, so follow us on Facebook for periodic ideas on how to recycle.

 

Paint: You don’t have to wait for our household hazardous waste events to dispose of latex and oil based paint. Visit our website, or www.paintcare.com to find locations that will accept used paint for FREE!.

 

Outreach: The Alliance also continued outreach to schools and businesses, working with both the Northeast Resource Recovery Association (NRRA) and the Northeast Recycling Council (NERC). After contacting all 25 schools and 300 of our businesses, the Alliance provided on-site assistance to three schools and 80 businesses. We are planning a business workshop this spring (2017) in partnership with the Bennington Chamber of Commerce. If your school, business or institution is interested in having someone visit to discuss better ways to handle solid waste, organics, recyclables and other materials, please contact Michael Batcher at 802-442-0713 x 2 or mbatcher@bcrcvt.org.

Funding and Grants: Most of the funding for the Alliance comes from the member towns. This year the Alliance applied for and received over $28,000 in grants from the Agency of Natural Resources for business outreach and for household hazardous waste events. The Agency of Agriculture and Markets provided $4,400 for pesticide collection at HHW events. We also teamed up with the Windham County Solid Waste Management District and the Londonderry Group to bring on an Eco AmeriCorps member to help with outreach and education.

Batteries and Fluorescent Bulbs and Paint: Many retail stores are accepting alkaline and rechargeable batteries, fluorescent bulbs, including both tubes and CFLs for FREE! Visit www.bcswavt.org or http://www.call2recycle.org/what-can-i-recycle/to find those establishments.

Wondering How to Recycle? Visit www.bcswavt.org and look at our Programs and Projects drop down. The A to Z list provides ideas on how to recycle and dispose of a number of items. There is also information on composting, donating clothing (textiles), construction and demolition debris, biosolids and disposing of prescription drugs. Talk to your hauler about recycling and how you may be able to save money by disposing of materials properly. Check with your town hall to find out how you can access your town transfer station and what materials they accept.

Compost Bin Sales and Workshop: Interested in composting in your backyard and learning more about composting? The Alliance will be selling both backyard compost bins and kitchen compost pails in early 2017. The latter will come in handy when transfer stations in the area begin accepting food scraps on July 1, 2017. We should have an announcement on our website and Facebook pages in early 2017 with more details.

Need More Information? Visit the Alliance website at www.bcswavt.org or contact Michael Batcher at 802-442-0713 x 2 or mbatcher@bcrcvt.org.