Virginia town opens recycling facility for residents

 The city of Harrisonburg, Virginia’s Public Works Department recently opened up the Recycling Convenience Center for use by residents after the town’s previous recycling center stopped accepting household items.

After the city was notified unexpectedly that Van der Linde Recycling, Troy, Virginia, would no longer operate its household waste processing facility, the city started researching alternative options.

“We felt it was a priority to provide residents an option to recycle now until a more permanent program is established,” Jim Baker, director of the Public Works Department, says. “Our staff members worked quickly to get a solution into place to accept recyclable materials at a recycling convenience center.”

Recyclable materials to be accepted include: all plastics, aluminum, tin, glass, paper, newspapers and magazines, and cardboard. Residents are responsible for taking their own recyclable materials to the center. In order to be processed, these items must be sorted into the appropriate container at the recycling center. There will also be an attendant on staff to provide assistance.

The city continues to research and evaluate future options for the city’s next solid waste and recycling process; however, the Recycling Convenience Center will be a permanent option for city residents to recycle, even after the next solid waste program is established.