The (re)cycle continues
Waste in landfill down, recycling up in county
Residential recycling has increased annually by 10 percent in Crow Wing County since 1996.
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By the numbers
0 - The cost to dispose of used oil with 10 free drop-off stations located throughout Crow Wing County. Disposing of lead-acid batteries, yard waste, used oil, household hazardous waste and recycling are all free at the landfill.
1 - The average amount of garbage in tons generated per person, per year.
5 - The coupon "dollar" value for Landfill Loot mailed out to households to defray a service charge at the Crow Wing County landfill such as disposing of electronics. In 2008, the county sent out 34,454 coupons and 4,009 were returned.
90 - The percentage rate of the appliance recycling nationwide in 2007. Typical appliances are 75 percent steel and steel used in appliances is made with a minimum of 25 percent recycled steel.
158 - The approximate amount in tons recycled at the Crosslake drop-off in 2008.
473 - The amount in pounds per household generated for curbside recycling in Brainerd in 2008. In Brainerd the recycling program collected 1,429 tons in 2008.
531 - The amount in tons of used residential electronics, such as TVs and computers, at the landfill between 2004 and 2008.
2,304 - The number of mattresses recycled in 2008 out of 2,646 collected at the landfill.
8,709 - Number of tires handled at the landfill in 2008. Tires are shredded and used at the landfill saving the county almost $60,302. Metal rims are recycled. Between 1992 and 2008, the landfill handled 116,396 tires.
9,645 - Number of households in the county with curbside recycling.
17,731 - Pounds of hazardous waste materials collected for reuse (such as paint, anti-freeze, fuel) in 2008 saving the county $4,753 in disposal costs.
60,145 - Number of appliances handled at the landfill between 1992 and 2008.
- Source: Crow Wing County 2008 recycling report
There are curbside recycling collection programs in Brainerd, Baxter and Breezy Point with the cities as recipients for state recycling funds to offset the pickup costs of the residential service.
Other area cities and townships have recycling drop-off sites with more limited curbside recycling in select cities - such as Pine River, Crosslake, Pequot Lakes and Merrifield - depending on the individual hauler.
In 2008, Crow Wing County reported 38,600 tons of recycling, including appliances, tires, used oil and commercial/industrial estimates. Compared to the waste generated in the county, the estimated recycling rate was 63.5 percent.
Josh Anderson, AAA Disposal Ironton, emptied garbage at the Crow Wing County landfill last week. In the last four years, Crow Wing County reports there has been a 24 percent decrease in the amount of garbage at the landfill and an increase in recycling - up 10 percent since 1996. Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
With landfill space a concern for governments and taxpayers, the recycling has coincided with a decrease in the amount of waste going into the Crow Wing County landfill as it dropped from 51,828 tons in 2005 to 42,827 tons in 2008.
Doug Morris, Crow Wing County waste management director, said in the last four years the amount of garbage has decreased by 24 percent. The greatest decrease is coming from businesses, Morris said. The Great Recession belt-tightening is no-doubt part of the increased focus on cutting down on waste. Through recycling, Morris said, businesses are able to cut down on costs and turn a liability into an asset.
In his 2008 recycling report on Crow Wing County, Morris said the greatest problem facing recycling is not the ability to collect materials, instead the challenge is the ability of new markets to take those materials and make new products and provide a stable price to increase the economic incentive to recycle. Morris stated increased demand for recyclables doesn't translate into higher prices as manufacturers are looking to get the recycled material at a low price to maintain profitability.
Efforts to make recycling more convenient have helped as households are able to co-mingle plastic, paper, cans and glass with access to curbside services or drop-off sites, but recycling is optional. Benefits come in reducing the amount of waste dumped in the landfill and putting materials back to use, thus reducing the pressure on natural resources. Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
For Morris, recycling is a not something that could be sustained as a mandated activity. Instead he said it needs to be considered a service.
Recycling is increasing as more tons are generated with the landfill from area cities and townships - climbing from 255 tons in 1991 to 4,696 tons in 2009 in Crow Wing County. It comes with a cost as the county reports the overall residential cost to recycle in 2009 was $312,027. Individual haulers are responsible for dealing with the recycling they collect and may haul to their own facility or other sites where the recyclables are separated.
There are more than a dozen Crow Wing County recycling sites with drop-off recycling in the cities of Crosby, Crosslake, Deerwood, Emily, Garrison, Ironton, Nisswa and Pequot Lakes. Township recycling drop-off locations are in Ideal, Mission, Roosevelt, Maple Grove, Bay Lake townships as well as a cooperative effort between St. Mathias, Fort Ripley and Crow Wing townships at the Crow Wing Town Hall and a Merrifield Lions site on Riverside Drive.
There is also a drop-off recycling site at the Crow Wing County landfill. And there are 10 drop-off stations throughout the county where people can dispose of used oil. In 2009, the oil drop-off sites collected 36,500 gallons of used oil. Another oil drop-off site is being created in Nisswa this year.
The county recycling facilities take cardboard, newspaper, office paper, magazines, mixed paper, phone books, aluminum and tin cans, glass and plastic bottles.
Efforts to make recycling more convenient have helped as households are able to co-mingle plastic, paper, cans and glass, Morris said. The county landfill offers a central site to drop off batteries, appliances, TVs, oil and yard waste.
But with government budgets tightening, Morris said the question may be whether funds for recycling will be there to defray costs and if mandates for recycling goals remain or increase. Minnesota has a mandated 35 percent recycling goal.
At his office at the county landfill, Morris said for businesses in the area recycling is readily identified as a benefit to the bottom line. Cardboard, for instance, that would cost a business to dump at the landfill can be bundled and sold instead turning a cost into a profit, even when it's a small one per ton. For the residential recycler, the decision to participate is often based on something else.
So why bother to separate the recyclables from the garbage? Morris said recycling helps take pressure off existing natural resources.
"Long term it's for environmental safety," Morris said.
RENEE RICHARDSON may be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.