DID YOU KNOW?

·            The average American throws away nearly four pounds of trash each day, an equivalent to his or her own weight each month.

·            Texans dump enough trash in landfills every two weeks to fill the Astrodome.

·            American consumers and industry throw away enough aluminum in a year to rebuild the entire United States airplane commercial fleet every three months.

 

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THAT?

·            First, we’re making too much trash.  Second, we are disposing of things like glass, aluminum, and tin that can be processed and used again for other useful materials.

 

WHAT SHOULD WE DO WITH OUR TRASH?

 

REDUCE

Waste reproduction requires a little forethought because the aim is to bring home less material that will wind up as trash.

  • Buy bulk-packaged items to cut down on individual packaging.
  • Buy products in reusable or recyclable containers.
  • Don’t buy disposable products when you can avoid them.
  • Patronize restaurants and other businesses that use recyclable or biodegradable wrappings.
  • Have your name removed from lists that send you unwanted mail.

 

REUSE

  • Reuse items as many times as possible.
  • Give old magazines, books, and catalogs to neighbors, hospitals and nursing homes.
  • Give unwanted clothing and repairable appliances to others or donate them to a charity.
  • Get together with neighbors and have a garage sale.

 

 

RECYCLE

THE SOMERSET COUNTY PROBATION DEPARTMENT

started a recycling program in 1996 using the slogan Cash from Trash.  The center located at the Wal-Mart Supercenter along route 601 in Somerset, recycles aluminum, tin, and glass.  Community members like yourself bring their recyclables to our center or one of our other community sites in Rockwood, Salisbury, or Hidden Valley and place the materials in the provided sheds and/or bin(s).  The Probation Department’s Community Service Program, which consists of offenders owing community service hours as a condition of a sentence, pick up the material from the community sites returning them to the Main Center.  There they sort the material separating the aluminum, tin, and color/non-color glass.  The material is then compacted and placed in the appropriate containers for shipment and further processing.

 

*Note: Please clean food debris from glass containers and remove lids and metal rings.

 

 

 

 

 WHAT HAPPENS TO THE MONEY GENERATED FROM THE PROBATION DEPARTMENT’S RECYCLING PROGRAM?

A Mini-Grant program, was initiated by the Probation Department in 2000.  The money generated from recycling is given back to the citizens of Somerset County for service projects that benefit community life and address community needs.  Through a grant application process, non-profit community groups or organizations can apply for grants up to $1,000 to be used for the operation, materials or supplies of a new or existing project.  All selected projects must integrate volunteer work provided by the Probation Department’s community service group of adult or juvenile offenders.  Applications are typically available during May of each

year by calling the Probation Department

at 814-445-1600 or obtaining the application from the County web site at:  www.co.somerset.pa.us.  Since the program’s inception, the County has granted approximately $12,000 for projects in nearly every community within Somerset County.

 

 

 

IS THERE ANY OTHER WAY TO HELP WITH THE RECYCLING EFFORT?

 

Recycling containers are available for festivals, fairs, sporting events, bingo, schools, churches or to any individual business or organization that would like to join in the recycling effort.  Containers will be delivered and then removed by the Community Service Program upon completion of the event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For further information concerning any of the Probation Department’s recycling programs please call: Sean Dolan at     814-445-1688 or e-mail: dolans@co.somerset.pa.us