The COVID-19 pandemic changed consumers shopping habits, creating a boom for online retailers that hasn’t slowed down. Corrugated cardboard currently represents 80% of the packaging used for online orders, meaning the demand for cardboard is as high as it has ever been.
Recycled cardboard is used to make cereal boxes, paperboard, paper towels, writing paper, and of course, more cardboard boxes. It is important that you are doing your part to recycle it properly. Remember to keep boxes empty, flat and clean. Boxes with packing material can’t be sorted at the recycling facility, so packing materials such as Styrofoam, plastic bags and wrap must be removed in advance. Cardboard boxes also need to be broken down prior to placing them in your the recycling container. This will make the cardboard less likely to get stuck in your curbside bin, and will save valuable space in your bin or community drop-off container.
The Adams-Clermont Solid Waste District is tasked with preparing and implementing the Solid Waste Management Plan for Clermont and Adams Counties. The Solid Waste District is responsible for designating landfills with enough disposal capacity for waste generated in Adams and Clermont counties, providing enough recycling opportunities for 80% of the population, managing scrap tire disposal and illegal dumps, litter clean-up activities, recycling and litter prevention education, and household hazardous waste disposal.
You may have seen some messages from Rumpke recently about battery disposal. Read on to find out what you are supposed to do with your spent batteries in Clermont County or Adams County, regardless of what trash service you use.
Alkaline batteries are single use, non-rechargeable, and are typically AAA, AA, C, D, and 9V sizes. Alkaline batteries will say “alkaline” on the battery. Alkaline batteries are ok to throw away in the trash. Check the batteries to be sure they do not say “lithium” or “rechargeable” before throwing away. Tape the terminals of 9V batteries before throwing away. Throw the batteries out as you use them. No need to collect them for special disposal. If you have a large collection you need to throw away, throw them into your bags of household trash a handful at a time. Do not place alkaline batteries in your recycling.
NEVER place lithium or rechargeable batteries in the trash or recycling. Lithium or rechargeable batteries come in may forms, from many kinds of battery powered devices. Lithium and rechargeable batteries can be AAA, AA, C, D, and 9V sizes, looking the same as alkaline batteries if you don’t pay close attention. These batteries will be labeled as “lithium” or “rechargeable” if they are not alkaline. Other types of lithium and rechargeable batteries can be found in
Placing lithium or rechargeable batteries in your trash or recycling causes devastating fires inside collection trucks and at facilities. Instead, you must dispose of lithium or rechargeable batteries by taking them to Lowes, Home Depot, Target, Best Buy, Staples, cell phone stores, or Batteries Plus Bulbs. Most stores that sell products with lithium or rechargeable batteries will have a special collection box for these batteries near their customer service desk. Call the store you plan to go to before heading over to confirm that they are running a lithium/rechargeable battery collection program.
If you have a business that regularly generates spent lithium or rechargeable batteries, you can look into purchasing your own battery disposal box from Call2Recycle. Once you fill the box, you can just ship it back to Call2Recycle.
Lead-acid car batteries never go in the trash or recycling. Ohio law requires anyone who sells car batteries to take old ones back. Contact your preferred auto service provider for car battery drop-off information.
Do you have other materials lying around your house that you need to dispose of, but don’t know how to do it properly? Check out this page for all things recycling and disposal in Adams and Clermont County http://oeqrecycle.clermontcountyohio.gov/tree/
Get out your calendars and save the date for the next Tire Collection event! Every year, The Adams-Clermont Solid Waste District applies for funding for tire amnesty days through the Ohio EPA’s Recycle Ohio Community & Litter Grant and the grant was awarded for the 2021-2022 grant cycle. This year’s tire amnesty day will be Friday September 24 & Saturday September 25, 8am-1pm in Jackson Twp, 3341 US Highway 50, Williamsburg, OH. We will be accepting up to 10 tires per person/household for $1 per tire. If you have more than 10 tires, please contact Doug Snyder at dsnyder@clermontcountyohio.gov or (513) 732-7744 prior to the event for assistance.
Want to be the first to know about tire amnesty events in your community? Sign up for our newsletter here! When you sign up, please put your township of residence next to your name in the “name” box.
If you need to dispose of your tires and are unable to make it to this event, please contact any tire retailer near you. Most tire retailers (such as Tire Discounters, Walmart, Firestone) will accept used tires and charge around $3.50/tire. For a list of other places to take your tires year round, see our Recycling Tree.
If you have any additional questions regarding proper tire disposal, please email Doug Snyder at dsnyder@clermontcountyohio.gov
Did you know that up to 40% of food grown and imported into the U.S. is wasted? Solid Waste Management Districts across Southwest Ohio are working with food service businesses and institutions to implement wasted food management practices that save money, benefit society, build customer loyalty, and improve the environment.
At this virtual workshop, the Center for EcoTechnology (CET) will provide an introduction to implementing wasted food prevention, donation, and diversion programs to Food Manufacturers and Retailers. Participants will also have a chance to meet with local service providers.
Participants will leave with an understanding of the next steps for building wasted food management into their operations and access to digital resources and guidance documents. All attendees will also have access to free one-on-one technical assistance from CET, which they can sign up for during or after the workshop.
Please reach out to wastedfood@cetonline.org with any questions.
You can find complete details in the event registration form. We will be sharing a final agenda and list of speakers with registered attendees prior to the event.
This workshop is in partnership with Hamilton, Warren, Montgomery, Adams-Clermont, and Butler County Solid Waste Management Districts, with support from EPA Region 5.
If you dropped off a strand of Christmas lights to one of the drop offs in the county this past holiday season, you’d be happy to hear that the amount of lights collected was almost double the amount collected during the prior year. Due to multiple collection points hosted by various county agencies, a total of 620 pounds of lights were collected in Clermont County!
The collected lights were taken to Cohen Recycling for processing. First, Cohen removed any non-recyclable trash from the load of lights. Lights were then packaged up and shipped to a metal recycler, where they will be chopped up into little pieces and the copper removed.
The recycling process is different depending on who buys the recycled lights. In some states, the lights are shredded, then separated into the raw products (plastic, glass and metal wire). These raw products are used to make roofing & construction materials, soles on slippers, car batteries, and new copper wire and pipes to name a few.
So, thank you to all who recycled Christmas lights through the special program. By adhering to ‘Reduce, Reuse and Recycle’, we can make our world a little cleaner, a little more sustainable.
Good news! The annual Spring Litter Cleanup has been rescheduled for July 4th through 25th. Go to www.springlittercleanup.com for more information!
Plastic bags do not go in curbside or drop-off recycling bins! Trash bags and shopping bags cannot be recycled at the facilities we send our recyclables to. When bags go to our recycling facilities, they can tangle on the sorting equipment and cause it to break down. Remove your recyclables from bags when you put them in the bin.
Although plastic shopping bags cannot be recycled through our curbside or drop-off recycling programs, recycling your bags is still possible through special programs. Try bringing your shopping bags to a grocery or department store for recycling. Many stores have plastic bag recycling bins just inside their entryways. Make sure your bags are clean and dry before dropping them off at a store recycling program.
Example of an in-store plastic bag recycling program
