Eight counties | 36 cities | one region

DIXON—Meramec Regional Planning Commission, with funding from the Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District (ORSWMD), gathered 6.56 tons of electronics, appliances and tires at the March 25 collection, held in Dixon. 40 vehicles from within the Ozark Rivers seven-county region – Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Phelps, Pulaski and Washington – dropped off items at the collection. MRPC partnered with the Dixon R-1 and the collection was held at the Dixon High School.

“This is the fourth collection hosted by the Dixon High School Key Club with their grand total of appliances, electronics and tires being diverted from the landfill being 27.64 tons,” said Jill Hollowell, environmental specialist at MRPC. “Thank you to Trish McCray and her Key Club students for their continued support.”

Troy Porter, the newly elected chairman of the ORSWMD who took over for Brady Wilson once he retired, says these special collections are valuable service to our region. 

“I personally dropped off two refrigerators and two televisions that were just taking up space in my basement,” Porter said. “The removal of items containing Freon and other hazardous waste is so important to our environment. The removal of tires that can be recycled and that also eliminates mosquito breeding grounds is a win-win. I encourage everyone to take advantage of these collections.” 

Appliances and electronics were the most collected items with a total of 6.1 tons. The most common items included microwaves, refrigerators and water heaters. An additional .46 tons of tires were collected at the Dixon collection. 

Appliances and e-waste are handled by Midwest Recycling Center, a certified collection contractor, who deconstructs the collected items to either be refurbished or recycled. Rare earth elements are extracted from electronic components, resulting in conservation of our natural resources. The last resort is responsible destruction and that assures contaminants, such as mercury, lead, arsenic and Freon, never pollute the air or water. Champlin Tire Recycling handles the recycling of the tires.

2023 collections are scheduled for June 10 in Rolla, Sept. 9 in Salem and Oct. 7 in St. Robert. For more information, visit ozarkrivers.org/programs-and-services/special-collections/. 

The Ozark Rivers District 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 Missouri Department of Natural Resources, promotes awareness and education to increase waste reduction and recycling efforts in member counties and cities. MRPC provides administration of the district and assists with a variety of implementation projects.

For more information about ORSWMD or waste reduction and recycling opportunities in the Ozark Rivers area, contact Tammy Snodgrass, MRPC environmental programs manager, or Jill Hollowell at 573-265-2993. Follow Ozark Rivers on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ORSWMD or on our website at ozarkrivers.org for future collection dates and waste management grants.

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. Steve Vogt, representing the city of Belle, serves as MRPC chairman. A professional staff of 33, led by Executive Director Bonnie Prigge, 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.orgor on Facebook at www.facebook.com/meramecregion/.

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Cutline: Workers from Midwest Recycling Center work to help Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management Chairman Troy Porter offload a refrigerator at the March 25 Special Collection held at Dixon High School. 40 cars participated in the collection for a total of 6.56 tons of electronics, appliances and tires being diverted from area landfills.