Ray Lovato Recycling Center Sees Much-Needed Increase in Product

Ray Lovato Recycling Center Sees Much-Needed Increase in Product

“Over the last 8 months, the Rock Springs community has demonstrated that there is a desire amongst its residents and businesses to do the right thing and recycle.” – Board President Devon Brubaker

ROCK SPRINGS — Since the start of 2018, the Ray Lovato Recycling Center has processed over 720,000 pounds of plastics, paper, chipboard, cardboard, and aluminum waste.

Through the support of our community, the Recycling Center has been able to preserve nearly 2,900 cubic yards of landfill space through the 1st seven months of 2018. That is equal to over 3,000 residential curbside trash cans of material.

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“Over the last 8 months, the Rock Springs community has demonstrated that there is a desire amongst its residents and businesses to do the right thing and recycle.” Board President Devon Brubaker said in a statement.

“The significant increase in recycling by the community has kept staff very busy at the Center. So busy, in fact, that volunteers are in high demand to help sort and process the materials,” Brusker added.

The Center’s staff and Board are excited for the future of the Center and the opportunities that are available going forward to partner with the Sweetwater County Solid Waste District #1, City of Rock Springs, and the local waste service providers.

While the increase in recycling has been a significant positive, the Center still faces financial and operational challenges.

 

Without a significant increase in volunteers, it will become more and more difficult to fund the labor needed to process the materials brought to the Center.

Additionally, the market for recyclable materials has been shrinking since the largest importer of the U.S.’s recyclables, China, started refusing the import of contaminated recyclables.

China’s new anti-pollution campaign – dubbed the National Sword – refuses some items outright and demands extremely clean recyclables for the rest (0.5% contamination).

With these challenges in mind, residents of Sweetwater County are encouraged to reach out to Matt Dillon at 307-352-6878 or stop by Monday – Friday to learn more about volunteering and ensure that when separating your waste, only recyclable materials are brought to the Center.

About the Ray Lovato Recycling Center

The Ray Lovato Recycling Center is a local non-profit 501(c)3 organization that provides recycling services to all of Sweetwater County.

The Center diverts well over a million pounds of waste from local landfills each year. Material accepted for recycling include corrugated cardboard boxes, magazines, office paper of all colors, newspapers, paperboard (cereal boxes), aluminum cans, plastics (#’s 1, 2, 3, 5, and 7), unsolicited direct mail, and phone books.

The Center is located at 100 Sheridan Street next to the A Street Bridge and offers convenient 24/7 drop off of recyclable materials.