Recycled Recognition for Volunteers
Let’s Talk Trash
Wheatland Music Festival Recycling
Let’s talk trash. Did you know the average American generates 4.5 pounds of waste every day? Over 50% of that trash is recyclable. That means over 2.25 pounds per person, per day, could be recycled in some way. This includes composting, general recycling, and the reuse of material. This means on average the Wheatland Festival has the potential of producing 51,975 pounds of recycling in our three day weekend event. Let’s take the challenge to recycle as much as we can this Wheatland. Look to the recycling tent for information on this year’s recycling program.
We hear so much in the news about greenhouse gases, water pollution, energy crisis, and more. I always remember recycling being an environmental program, but being employed in the industry it becomes about economics. Let us run down memory lane for a moment and remember the environmental ties of recycling. Recycling lessens emissions of many greenhouse gases and water pollution, saves energy, supplies raw material, creates jobs, stimulates green technologies, conserves valuable resources, and reduces the need for new landfills and combustors. Last, but not least it takes our waste off the shoulders of our children. According to the EPA, the United States 1996 recycling efforts prevented the release of 33 million tons of carbon from becoming air pollution; this is approximately the amount of carbon emitted by 25 million cars annually.
The Isabella County Recycling Center will provide recycling for the festival this year. We will provide two large blue recycling dumpsters behind the recycling Tent, next to the CACC building. We will be accepting broken down cardboard, and our “commingle” container line. Our commingle container line includes clear and brown glass, tin and aluminum cans, #1 plastic (water bottles) and #2 plastic containers. We are excited to be introducing our clear stream collection containers also. You will see these new containers strategically placed around the festival grounds for your water bottle disposal. Literature on the programs available through the Isabella County Recycling Center will be available at the Recycling Tent. If you have questions, comments or concerns please call the Recycling Hotline at 989.773.9631
Written by: Carey Pauquette-Schalm,
Environmental Education Specialist, Isabella County Recycling Center
We wish to extend a special thanks this year to all of the volunteers in Recycle for a job well done. This year Recycle set records by processing and disposing over two tons of materials. This is an enormous undertaking for this small crew. The Recycle crew has adopted the motto of "Ask not what Wheatland can do for you, But what Recycle can do for the Planet." Their work was globally awesome.
Their efforts go far beyond what meets the eye. The majority of the workers put in shifts far greater than what is required thanks to their dedication to maintaining the Wheatland purport and earnest efforts of enhancing ecological balance.
As is the circumstance with all areas of volunteerism, when someone else is doing the job it appears to be easy. We need to be mindful of the vast majority of work that gets done that is not readily apparent to others. The Recycle crew is in this rank with their hard work in digging long deep trenches and burying all the compost materials gathered from the food vendors. Well over a ton of compost is disposed in an environmentally friendly fashion.
Through their involvement, the family of Wheatland volunteers helps to make the festival a beneficial encounter for all. Volunteers working together and felicitating one another will accomplish our goals of camaraderie and teamwork. So keep working together "Red Shirts" and give each other the approbation so well deserved.
Listed below is the Recycle family of volunteers:
Jimbo & Chris Pollack, Bill & Linda Zimmerman, Randy Worden, Cap & Sharon Pethers, Kim, Nick & Brenda Maxwell, Mike Noteboom, Ada Takacks, Scott Schmidt, Greg Kemppaimen, Ginger Bardenhagen and Dawn George.
We Thank You Again and Again
