Open House for Educators at Recycling Center Announced

DALTON, GA – Local educators are invited to visit the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority’s Recycling Center during its annual Open House for Educators on Tuesday, August 6, 2013 to find out what they have to offer their school.  The event has a flexible schedule allowing guests to come and go as they like between 9:00 am and 12:00 pm.  Educators from Whitfield County Public Schools, City of Dalton Public Schools, and private schools that participate in the Target Recycling at School program are specifically invited.  However, representatives from local home school groups, and other organizations that work with children, like Girl Scouts, are welcome to attend.

During the open house teachers and staff will receive an overview of the Target Recycling at School program, which provides recycling collection services to public and private schools in Whitfield County, an environmental education program, annual recycling contest, and other complimentary services to participating locations.  Visitors will also learn about setting up a recycling program for their school, and improving current recycling rates.

Guests will have the opportunity to tour the recycling center, and learn what happens to the things recycled at their school.  Several environmental education activities available for school visits and facility tours will be demonstrated.  Promo items, snacks, and educational materials, like coloring books, and posters will also be provided.  Reservations are requested but not required. 

The recycling center is located on the same property as the Old Dixie Hwy. Landfill and Convenience Center at the south end of the county at 4189 Old Dixie Hwy. in Dalton.  Directions are available online at www.dwswa.org/directions.  For more information, or to make a reservation call 706-278-5001 or e-mail: lswafford@dwswa.org.

2012 Billboard Design Contest Winner Announced

Eastbrook Middle School 8th grader, Brisa Mandujano, is the overall winner of the 2012 America Recycles Day Billboard Design Contest hosted by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority’s program Target Recycling at School.

The design chosen out of 193 entries includes the phrase, “Recycle, it’s the natural thing to do” which was the theme for America Recycles Day 2011. It features a group of students passing recyclable items, like bottles and cans, to each other and placing them in a green recycling bin.

The winning design will be displayed on two billboards in the Whitfield County area for at least one month. This is the third year of the design contest open to Whitfield County middle school students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade attending either a public or private school that recycles with Target Recycling.

The billboard design contest had a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winner from each grade level. The nine students, listed below, received a certificate of participation and a gift bag with America Recycles Day items and products made from recycled materials. (Their entries can be seen at the end of this article.)

6th grade:

• 1st Place – Jessie Zambrano, Dalton Middle School
• 2nd Place – Philip Le, Dalton Middle School
• 3rd Place – Viviana Juijon, Dalton Middle School

7th grade:

• 1st Place – Haley Chapman, Dalton Middle School
• 2nd Place – Karina L. Gonzales, Dalton Middle School
• 3rd Place – Jesus Hernandez, Dalton Middle School

8th grade:

• 1st Place – Brisa Mandujano, Eastbrook Middle School
• 2nd Place – Nicolas Perez, Dalton Middle School
• 3rd Place – Johnny Huynh, Dalton Middle School

America Recycles Day is celebrating 15 years of being a community-driven event dedicated to promoting recycling awareness, commitment, and action in the U.S. For more information on recycling, and to take the pledge to recycle visit www.AmericaRecyclesDay.org.

Target Recycling at School provides recycling collection services and environmental education opportunities to schools in Whitfield County. For more information call 706-278-5001 or the Recycling Page of our website.

3rd Annual America Recycles Day Billboard Contest Announced

The Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority is pleased to announce it’s 3rd Annual America Recycles Day Billboard Contest for 6th, 7th, and 8th graders that attend either public or private schools participating in the Target Recycling at School program. Students are invited to design a billboard in keeping with the spirit of America Recycles Day, which is celebrated yearly on November 15. The top design out of the three grade levels will be displayed for four weeks on two billboards in Whitfield County.

During the 2011 contest, Dalton Middle School 7th grader, Joel Paez won first place overall. His artwork, chosen from 105 entries, included the phrase, “I Recycle. Do You?” in green letters and showed a young boy picking up an item to recycle. The suggested billboard themes for the 2012 contest are, “Let’s Target Recycling Together”, “I Recycle. Do You?” and “Recycle, it’s the natural thing to do.”

Download the Contest Guide with an entry form. Deadline for entries is Wednesday, November 7, 2012. There is no entry fee, however an official entry form needs to be included with the artwork. Only artwork submitted directly from a school representative will be accepted. Winners will be announced on Thursday, November 15.

For more information contact Liz Swafford, Recycling and Education Program Coordinator, at 706-278-5001.

PHOTO CAPTION:The 3rd Annual America Recycles Day Billboard Design Contest is underway. Pictured is the winning design of 2011 designed by Joel Paez of Dalton Middle School.

Georgia SWANA awards scholarship to local high school student

Sawyer L. Locke, from Northwest Whitfield High School, was awarded a scholarship by Georgia SWANA board member emeritus Mack Belue during Senior Recognition Day.

(Dalton, GA, May 23, 2012) - The Georgia Chapter of the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) has awarded five Academic Scholarships this year to outstanding High School seniors and College students in the state of Georgia.   One of the scholarships awarded this year went to a local high school student.

Whitfield County resident Sawyer L. Locke, who attends Northwest Whitfield High School, was awarded a scholarship in the amount of $1,500.   Georgia SWANA board member emeritus Mack Belue presented the award during Senior Recognition Day on May 18 at the school.

SWANA maintains that the education of students and the general public is an important step in eliminating some of our biggest solid waste management problems.  The scholarship program aims to support the growth of knowledgeable and responsible solid waste management professionals for the future.  For more information about the GA SWANA Scholarship program visit www.gaswana.org. 

Local Schools Place in Nationwide Recycling Competition

New Hope Middle School Takes 5th at the State Level

(Dalton, GA, March 9, 2012) –  Keep America Beautiful, Inc., the nation’s largest volunteer-based community action and education organization, has announced the winners of “Recycle-Bowl”, the first comprehensive nationwide recycling competition for elementary-, middle- and high-school students.  45 schools in Georgia participated at the state level recycling as much as possible during the weeks of October 17, 2011 to November 12, 2011.   Several local schools placed in the Top 10 in Georgia, including New Hope Middle School, which placed 5th in the state.

Public and private schools in Whitfield County currently participate in Target Recycling at School, a free recycling collection service offered by the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority.  With the assistance of the DWSWA’s recycling center, 35 local schools were registered for the inaugural competition.  Each school received a kit to help promote recycling in their school.  At the end of the competition period the weights of the recyclables collected at each school were reported to Recycle-Bowl staff.

Georgia’s Top 10 Recycle-Bowl Competitors:

1. Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School, Rabun Gap, GA

2. Brighten Academy, Douglasville, GA

3. Hollis Hand Elementary, Lagrange, GA

4. Crabapple Crossing Elementary School, Milton, GA

5. New Hope Middle School, Dalton, GA

6. Pleasant Grove Elementary School, Dalton, GA

7. Dug Gap Elementary School, Dalton, GA

8. Learning Tree School, Dalton, GA

9. Whitfield Career Academy / Phoenix High School, Dalton, GA

10. Dawnville Elementary School, Dalton, GA

A full list of statewide winners can be found at www.Recycle-Bowl.org.

The total amount of school only recyclables recovered nationwide during the 2011 competition added up to 2,088,000 pounds, which in turn prevented the release of nearly 990 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO2E). In real-world terms, this reduction in greenhouse gases is equivalent to the annual emissions from 154 passenger cars; 191,998 gallons of gas; or nearly 7.4 million gallons of water.

“Keep America Beautiful is thrilled with the success of Recycle-Bowl’s inaugural year and our congratulations go to all participating schools for their work in showing how small changes can make a huge impact,” said Matt McKenna, president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful.

Recycle-Bowl By The Numbers:

• 1,223 schools registered – 1% of all U.S. public and private schools.
• More than 500,000 students participated in the competition.
• On average, 5.32 pounds of material was collected per person in the school versus school division during the four weeks of the competition.
• 67% of schools saw “significant” or “some” increase in the amount of material recycled.
• If all students in America recycled at the rate of this year’s Recycle-Bowl competitors, approximately 1.8 million tons of material would be diverted annually from landfills. That would be the weight of 156,000 school buses!

About Keep America Beautiful

Keep America Beautiful, Inc., established in 1953, is the nation's largest volunteer-based community action and education organization. This national nonprofit forms public-private partnerships and programs that engage individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community environments.  For additional information, visit www.kab.org.