Team strives to step up local recycling efforts

On average, about 30 percent of the nation’s solid waste is recycled. In stark contrast, barely five percent of Clay County’s solid waste is recycled.

Steve Kaagan and Bryan Hedden emphasized such statistics Monday in an effort to step up recycling efforts at Clay County Schools.

Partners for more than four years now, Hedden and Kaagan transformed the “Tough on Trash” campaign they created into an entire initiative dubbed “Greening Clay County.”

Having collected a freshly-tossed mud-speckled bottle from a county roadside earlier in the day, Kaggan explained to the school board that student learning is key to the plan.

“This isn’t a waste; it’s a resource,” he said, adding that the goal was to turn the next generation into advocates for recycling.

Hedden said that the high school’s environmental science class is already collecting recyclables on campus, having recently gathered nine 33 gallon bags filled with plastics (during just the month of March) and taking the bags to the transfer station.

The school also has a mixed paper trailer for use.

By becoming more conservative and sending less to landfills, the school system can save money, Kaagan insisted. He said he was interested in inspecting the school’s current operations.

Short-term goals include setting up paper recycling boxes in every classroom and establishing a strong recycling system for special school events and sports matches.

Hedden said that they’re trying to find state grants to acquire a cardboard recycling trailer for Clay County Schools. Eventually, he said, a system should be in place to handle recycling in the school cafeteria.

It’ll be great to see money come back to the schools,” Kaagan said, noting that the school system is one of the biggest producers of refuse in the county.

There are just two decades left (on average) for United States landfills, Kaagan said, stressing that there aren’t likely to be new ones built in the meantime.