Photo By Emily Hileman | The Fort Jackson Reuse Center has donations such as paint, ink cartridges, hand...... read more read more
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The Fort Jackson Recycle Center holds quarterly shred days to help eliminate desk clutter and any documents that contain Personal Identifiable Information or PII. Shred days are open to the entire Fort Jackson community, including local retirees. On the most recent Shred Day, the community worked together to shred nearly 6,000 pounds of paper. The shredded paper is then sent to a paper mill to be recycled.
This is just one of the many components of Fort Jackson Regulation 200-9 - Qualified Recycling Program.
“There are two primary reasons for shred days and recycling on Fort Jackson,” says Lisa McKnight, hazardous substance program manager of the Directorate of Public Works Environmental Division. “The first is to divert waste from landfills. They go out to these beautiful country sides where they’re just going to take up your grandmother’s property and they’re going to dig a huge hole and fill it with trash,” she said. “We try to recycle and find a home for everything.”
The other reason is that it’s required on Fort Jackson, according to Fort Jackson Regulation 200-9.
“It’s like stealing from the government when we throw plastic bottles in the trash, because we can get money for recyclables,” McKnight said.
The Recycling Center located at 5671 Lee Road on Fort Jackson can take most recyclables such as newspapers, aluminum, nonworking appliances, and cardboard.
If you’re generating something that’s not on the Recycle Center’s website or in the Fort Jackson Environmental Guidebook, McKnight says to let her know. “Not only do we want to capture it if it’s a hazardous or special waste, but if there’s a way to recycle it and possibly get funds for it, then we want it.”
DPW takes things such as lamps, motor oil and vehicle batteries to alleviate some of the burden on the Recycle Center and because of the regulatory requirements that go with those special items. Household items like lamps and other electronics contain valuable metals and materials that can be separated, reused and recycled.
The Reuse Center can also take larger items such as working appliances, furniture, rugs and curtains as well.
It may sound like a daunting task, but recycling on Fort Jackson also comes with a reward. The money received for recycling goes through the Qualified Recycling Program, or QRP, and the money stays on Fort Jackson. MWR received the funds and then give out $10,000 per quarter to the various military organizations that recycle.
The Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation has developed an equation so that everyone that recycles gets a piece of the proverbial pie. Military units can adopt civilian organizations to help increase the amount of recyclables they submit each quarter, as well.
In order to receive funds, military units carry their recyclables to the Recycle Center.
“They go inside and they get a little ticket that has the weight on it and turn that into their S-4,” McKnight said. “The S-4 shop turns that in to DFMWR quarterly and they get a check back. It’s that easy.”
“Reduce, Reuse, Recycle is the phrase,” McKnight said. “We want you to reduce spending – try and see if you already have certain items. We have a Reuse Center that has spray paints, hand sanitizers, ink jet cartridges and other office supplies.”
The DPW Environmental team even took it a step further by repurposing paint and other supplies to make a plaque for an Environmental Stewardship Award. They used spray paint that was donated to the reuse center as well as repurposed wood from a broken wooden pallet.
The Reuse Center is in Building 2558, Essayons Way and is open Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Recycle Center is open Monday – Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. for your recycling needs. The next Shred Day is scheduled for June 13 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
| Date Taken: | 03.02.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 03.08.2023 12:19 |
| Story ID: | 439941 |
| Location: | FORT JACKSON, SC, US |
| Web Views: | 40 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Saving the planet, one pound at a time, by Emily Hileman, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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