Eight counties | 36 cities | one region

ST JAMES—Organizations, communities and businesses throughout the seven-county Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District (ORSWMD) recently received recycling surveys in the mail and are encouraged to complete and return thesurveys to help provide valuable information and improve future recycling efforts and programs.

The surveys are part of a recycling r

ate study Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) is conducting for the district.

“I think its important to try to establish some sort of a baseline so we know where our recycling rate is atthis time so that we know where we are with any goals we have established,” ORSWMD Chairman and city of Rolla Environmental Services Director Brady Wilson said. “Moving forward we have some sort of a gauge to see how successful any of our programs are.”

Wilson encourages businesses, cities and organizations in the district to participate by completing and returning the survey, noting that the more surveys that are completed, the more accurate the results will be.

Organizations that did not receive a survey may obtain one by contacting MRPC Assistant Director and Environmental Programs Manager Tammy Snodgrass at 573-265-2993 or tsnodgrass@meramecregion.org.

In addition to being used as a tool to measure program success, Wilson hopes the survey may also help the ORSWMD board to better understand needs within the district.
“It may also help us identify where the district may need to focus some resources to fill some gaps in the future,” he said.

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 MDNR, involves intense education and increased recycling efforts in member counties and cities.

For more information about ORSWMD or recycling opportunities in the Ozark Rivers region, contact Snodgrass, MRPC environmental programs manager, at 573-265-2993 or by email. MRPC provides day-to-day administration for the solid waste district.

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 20, 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.