Solid Waste & Recycling E-News: October 2023

• Did You Know?
• Fall 2023 Shred-A-Thon
• Solid Waste Master Plan Draft Proposal
• Recycling Stars Update
• Solid Waste & Recycling by the Numbers
• What's in the Cart?

Bring your confidential documents to the Orange County Shred-A-Thons for free and safe destruction and recycling. Orange residents, small businesses, and local government employees only (including Chapel Hill in Durham County). Drive-Thru service only; no walk ups. Wearing a mask is optional.

Saturday, October 21^st, 2023, behind Home Depot in Hampton Pointe.

625 Hampton Pointe, Hillsborough, NC 27278

Saturday, October 28^th, 2023, at the Eubanks Park & Ride Lot.

1768 Eubanks Road, Chapel Hill, NC 27516

Both events are from 10 am – 2 pm, or until capacity is met.

You must handle your own paper. Paper must be in clear plastic bags, paper bags, reusable bags (up to 13 gal) or boxes (no larger than a banker box). No black trash bags. Limit 4.

One trip per household or organization. Confidential paper only. No newspaper, receipts, junk mail, or catalogs. No plastic folders, plastic notebook covers, large metal clips, notebook rings, credit cards, or electronic media.

Solid Waste Master Plan Draft Proposal

The draft proposal of the Solid Waste Master Plan Road to Zero Waste was presented at the Solid Waste Advisory Group (SWAG) Meeting this past September. Orange County’s goal is to reach “Zero Waste” by 2045 and defines “Zero Waste” as the reduction of solid waste to nothing, or as close to nothing as possible, by minimizing excess consumption by means of responsible production, consumption, and reuse and maximizing the recovery of solid wastes through recycling and composting. The draft proposal was written using feedback from the Road to Zero Waste online survey, community listening sessions, and meetings with traditionally marginalized community members.

The draft Master Plan sets forth three scenarios with varying degrees of infrastructure, funding, and programming. The draft proposal recommends new programs and facilities, including a single-stream recycling facility, additional employees, and expansion of the organics/food waste drop-off program. The proposed Zero Waste Plan, once fully implemented, will result in collection of up to 47,000 additional tons of recycling and 26,000 additional tons of organics annually. The increased tonnage, made up of all types of recycling materials, would be the result of several initiatives, including updating of the regulated recyclable materials ordinance, expanded education and outreach, including outreach in multiple languages, expanded drop off options, seeking recycling options for additional materials, and making concentrated efforts with multifamily housing residents and the schools in Orange County.

Looking ahead, the Road to Zero Waste Master Plan draft proposal will be presented to the Orange County Board of Commissioners for review and adoption. For more information on the master plan and to view the presentation delivered at the SWAG Meeting and draft proposal, please visit orangecountync.gov/zerowaste.

Recycling Stars Update

Through the Recycling Stars Program, Solid Waste staff are continuing to apply new Recycle Right stickers to single-family curbside recycling carts and provide personal education materials to residents on what can and cannot be recycled. Residents receive a Recycling Star, Light Contamination, or Oops Tag letter depending on the materials in their cart.

The program shows vast improvement in the quality of recyclables found in curbside carts. In fact, 59% of carts showed improvement over the course of evaluations. 35% of carts had plastic bags on first inspection; this percentage was reduced to 18% on the final inspection. Additionally, 48% of carts receiving an Oops tag on first inspection received a Star by the final inspection. When carts that received an Oops tag on the first inspection were available for 4 inspections, 82% received one or more stars during the following 3 inspections.

Carts that receive two or more Stars are entered into a raffle to win an Earth Machine backyard composter, $50 gift card to the farmers market, or $50 Visa gift card. Raffle winners were randomly selected by SWAG members at the last meeting and will be contacted by Solid Waste to receive their award!

Solid Waste & Recycling by the Numbers

Orange County submitted its annual Local Government Solid Waste and Materials Management Report to the NC Department of Environmental Quality on September 1^st. Below are some figures reflecting the materials collected between July 2022 and June 2023:

Recycling 

• Orange County has 68,142 households, 44,013 of which are eligible for curbside recycling collection. An estimated 33,800 households participate in the curbside recycling program.
• 8,028 tons of curbside recycling were collected. Based on the number of curbside participants, each household produces roughly 0.24 tons, or 475 lbs. of recycling per year.
• 1,019 tons of single-stream recycling were dropped off at the Waste & Recycling Centers or 24-hr Drop Off Sites.
• 1,186 tons of corrugated cardboard were collected through separate cardboard drop-off. About 300 tons of corrugated cardboard were collected from commercial establishments. In total 1,486 tons were collected.

Food Waste

• 509 tons of food and organic waste (that is over 1,000,000 lbs.!) was collected through the County’s Food Waste Drop-Off sites and Commercial Food Waste Collection Program.
• During the last fiscal year (July 2021 – June 2022), about 455 tons were collected.

Glass On The Side

• 38 tons of separate glass recycling were collected from commercial participants of the Glass On The Side program. 235 tons glass were dropped off by residents at the Waste & Recycling Centers and 24-hr drop-off sites.
• 150 tons of separate glass were collected and brought to Orange County from Alamance and Durham County’s Glass “On The Side” programs this past fiscal year.

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. Some contaminants that inspectors have found:

• Makeup product containers are not recyclable. Please throw these away.
• Deceased animals are not accepted in recycling. Please contact one of the following numbers for assistance/removal:
  • Carrboro: 919-918-7425
  • Chapel Hill: 919-969-5100
  • Hillsborough City: 919-732-1270
  • Unincorporated Orange County: 919-296-6080
  • For animals that are on private property or more than 50 feet from a road, citizens should either bury them or call the Department of Transportation at (919) 245-2007 to inquire about other possible disposal options.
• Plastic trays cannot be recycled. These items are not one of the four accepted plastic shapes in Orange County (only bottles, tubs, jugs, and jars can be recycled).
• Pencils and other writing utensils are not recyclable. Please donate writing utensils in working condition to the Salvage Sheds or local donation centers. Throw away non-working items.
• Wine corks cannot be recycled. 100% natural wine corks (that do not contain plastic or synthetic materials) can be composted. If you are unsure if the cork is 100% natural, please throw it away.

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.

Follow Us On Social Media

For more waste and recycling content, follow Orange County NC Solid Waste @ocncsolidwaste on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.