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Alaska State Fair Recycling
Green Star, Valley Community for Recycling Solutions (VCRS), and the Alaska State Fair organized the second year of successful recycling on the fairgrounds. During the 12 days of the Fair, volunteers collected more than 15.75 tons of recyclables, up from 14.5 tons in 2002, which is a 10% increase. The figures for the four primary materials collected during both years were down slightly from last year (see the first four items listed below) but the overall total is higher because of several items informally collected this year that were not tallied last year. Specifically, we collected, weighed, and recycled the plastic HDPE milk jugs collected this year, and large quantities of mixed paper, including boxes of extra brochures and flyers, 4-pack and 6-pack paperboard containers, molded paper fruit trays, and more. Lower figures may be the result of the rainy weather at the Fair for much of the week. Attendance figures for this year are higher than last year -- 312, 419 attendees in 2003, up about 4,500 people from 2002. However, on cooler, rainy days, those people are less likely to purchase beverages.
Again, the organizers and volunteers enjoyed numerous positive comments from fairgoers, vendors, and others involved.
Volunteers from Elmendorf Air Force Base empty a recycing bin.
A volunteer collects cardboard, the biggest recyclable by volume collected at the Fair. The 2003 State Fair recycling effort built upon last year's lessons learned. More recycling bins were placed on the fairgrounds, giving fairgoers more than 200 opportunities to recycle. Bins were placed near as many trash bins as possible, from gate to gate along the colored trails. Bins were also placed in Raven Hall, in the grandstand area, in the livestock barn, in the beer garden, and in the equestrian area. In addition, two part-time staff people were hired as Fair employees specifically to work on recycling. This took some of the pressure off of the organizers and volunteers and allowed us to capture a larger percentage of the vendors' recyclable cardboard, which is often put out early in the morning when the vendors restock their booths. History of the Program The State Fair's recycling program began during the 2001 Fair with a waste assessment and discussion among Green Star, Valley Community for Recycling Solutions (VCRS), and the Alaska State Fair. All three groups agreed that recycling at the Fair would be a valuable addition and with some effort, it was a feasible project. Green Star and VCRS staff committed time and energy to the project and the Fair offered its full support, including staff time, supplies, and publicity. For the next year, the three groups met regularly, planning a strategy, identifying resources, and recruiting volunteers.
Clockwise from top left: Carts for collecting recyclables awaiting the first team of recycling volunteers; a few members of the Alaska Center for the Environment team receive instructions before they begin their shift; a pair of trash and recycling bins near the midway; Pioneer Peak stands over the fair; State Fair recycling volunteer and staff person, Dianne and Zach, explain to a young Girl Scout how to remove caps and sort the recyclables; and volunteer onsite coordinators, Kathleen and Rita, take a break from flattening cardboard. This Year's Fair This year, about 200 recycling barrels were placed throughout the fairgrounds. This year's effort was the work of about 350 volunteers, down from approximately 500 in 2002. One goal for next year is to reduce the number of volunteers needed even further by streamlining the volunteer shift schedule and including more duties in the staff job descriptions. In addition, maintenance crews got more involved and many dropped off cardboard at the bin rather than discarding what they had collected with the trash. Several items also were informally collected, in addition to the glass, aluminum, plastic, and cardboard. Coffeee huts saved their milk jugs, so the recyclers collected and bagged those. And mixed paper increased the final numbers significantly. The paper was collected, loaded into volunteer vehicles, and hauled directly to the Valley's recycling center every few days. The volunteers patrolled the fairgrounds pulling “Recycling Team” collection carts, each with a tall recycling flag and often decorated by the volunteer organization on duty. The volunteer teams removed bags of cans and bottles from recycling bins, checked trash bins for stray recyclables and salvaged many of them, and responded to vendor requests to take away cardboard boxes for recycling.
BP Thank you to the following organizations, each of which provided a team of volunteers:
And finally, a big thank you to all of the individual volunteers who helped recycle, rain or shine. These people are too numerous to list but we want each of them to know their efforts were recognized and appreciated. |
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