“When we arrived, it was a step back into a war zone,” Kenny Gaddy, material sorter and identifier, Fort Hood Recycle, said. “It was a realistic set with debris and piles of scrap metal along the narrow streets and alleyways.”
Recycle employees navigated through the war-torn streets and filled five 40-yard roll-off containers with recyclables that will generate revenue and will help to sponsor Soldier and Family community events.
“It’s great to have our customers and the crew from the National Geographic miniseries support our recycle program,” Gaddy said. “We provide a service to help our customers and they help us out. It’s a positive cycle that continuously gives back to the installation.”
An average of $100,000 is donated annually and directly put back in to the Fort Hood community to support events like the fireworks for the Independence Day celebration, Music on the Lawn summer series, UFC fight nights, Oktoberfest, Month of the Military Child and other events.
“We divert anywhere between 600 to 800 tons a month from the landfill, which is quite a bit being collected, processed and sold,” Wayne Stanford, supervisory logistics management specialist, Fort Hood Recycle, said. “Recycling materials from the miniseries set helps to support our net zero waste goals and diversion efforts.”
The miniseries was filmed at the Elijah MOUT site and made to look like Iraq’s Sadr City. To add to the authenticity of the site, Fort Hood Recycle provided a 30-foot roll-off container of plastic bottles that covered the streets along with other debris.
“It was a glimpse into the Baghdad neighborhood that took account of the smallest details,” Stanford said.
Joey Hudgins, location manager, “The Long Road Home,” and his team identified what could be recycled, marking scrap metal items with green spray paint.
“Since many items were rented from various businesses, we collaborated with Joey and his crew to help green the set and gain the most of what we could accept,” Stanford said.
Stanford and his team recycled a variety of set props that included everything from stoves and cast iron bath tubs to automotive parts, bicycles and lawn chairs.
“The recycle team was instrumental in our commitment to be good environmental stewards of the Fort Hood community,” Hudgins said. “We appreciate their teamwork and support to help maximize what could be recycled and diverted from the landfill.”
Stanford emphasized that Fort Hood Recycle is here to assist anyone including contractor, civilian and military activities on the installation who are in need of roll-off services.
“If you generate a large amount of recyclables, then just reach out to us,” he added. “We provide a service to anyone on the installation and are here to help to make recycling easy for customers.”