Stephens Co. Continues Recycling Program Discussions

Stephens County officials continue to look at how to re-start recycling for county residents.

On Tuesday, the county commission met with representatives from Keep Toccoa-Stephens County Beautiful and Sarah Visser, a representative from Keep Georgia Beautiful.

Stephens County removed recycling bins from its convenience sites back in April, but commissioners voted in May to work on restoring recycling availability for residents after public feedback on the issue.

County Commission Chairman Dennis Bell said that the board is committed to having recycling back in place.

“We were led to believe there were some problems out there,” said Bell. “We acted on it. We found out we were misinformed and we want to get it back the way it was.”

Visser said one of the biggest parts of having a successful recycling program is educating the public on how to recycle and the importance of recycling.

She said doing that and having good signage makes separating recyclables easier and limits the workload on staff to make sure that recycling is separated.

“It is an every day thing you are talking about,” said Visser. “What can go in recycling and how to separate it.”

Visser went on to say that Keep Georgia Beautiful feels that having it separated before it is hauled off is the best way to handle recycling.

Also, she said that the county should not look at recycling as a profit-making venture.

“Because of the volatility of the markets, it is very hard to break even,” said Visser. “I would not consider it a profit center for any county. That is not a reason to start recycling. The reason to start recycling is to save landfill space, you have demand for it from your residents, because it supports Georgia’s economy in other ways.”

Stephens County Administrator Phyllis Ayers said that a committee will meet in the coming weeks to get more specific on how recycling will look in the county.

Ayers said the goal is to re-start recycling for county residents as soon as possible.