Eight counties | 36 cities | one region

ROLLA—An Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District (ORSWMD) special waste collections drive collected 24,659 pounds of residential recyclable electronics, appliances and tires. Some 213 vehicles from Phelps County and 47 vehicles from neighboring counties dropped off items at the May 21 collection at Brewer Science, Inc., parking lot in Rolla.

Brady Wilson, director of environmental services department for the city of Rolla, said citizens are searching for responsible waste disposal opportunities.

“The special recycling collection event held at Brewer Science gave residents an opportunity to recycle tires, appliances and electronics,” Wilson said. “During these events, these items are recovered for beneficial use through recycling and reuse.”

Jill Hollowell, collection administrator and environmental specialist at Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC), said the community has come to rely on the collection event.

“The Brewer Science collection is a well-established collection in the community,” Hollowell said. “We greatly appreciate support from Brewer Science’s hard working staff who accepted and stacked 529 tires.”

Electronics, appliances and other corded items accounted for 12.32 tons, and tires added an additional 11.41 tons to the collection.

“These popular collection events help to remove these items from the environment where they can present threats of potential pollution from heavy metals, chemicals and other pollutants,” Wilson said.

Midwest Recycling Center (MRC), a recycling company with a zero landfill policy, was contracted to dispose of the appliances and electronics. Ryan Hall, MRC logistics manager, answered consumer questions at the event, such as where the electronics are taken.

“We don’t take anything to a landfill, nor do we send electronics to under-developed countries,” Hall said. “Everything we collect either gets broken down and recycled or repurposed.”

The city of Rolla, Brewer Science, ORSWMD and MRPC sponsored the special collection with funding through Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR).

The next collection will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sept. 17 in Cuba at Hood Park, at the end of Hood Park Drive.

ORSWMD includes Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Phelps, Pulaski and Washington counties and their respective cities with populations of 500 or more. The district’s strategy for solid waste reduction, which has been individually adopted by all member governments and approved by MDNR, involves intense education and increased recycling efforts in member counties and cities.

Formed in 1969, MRPC is a voluntary council of governments serving Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Osage, Phelps, Pulaski and Washington counties and their respective cities. A professional staff of 21, directed by the MRPC board, offers technical assistance and services, such as grant preparation and administration, housing assistance, transportation planning, environmental planning, ordinance codification, business loans and other services to member communities.

To keep up with the latest MRPC news and events, visit the MRPC website at www.meramecregion.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/meramecregion.