Recycling & Garbage - KXLT - Fox 47 Rochester MN News, Weather and Sports

Recycling and Reducing
Recycling and reducing your waste saves resources and can save you money. In addition to creating less waste, you may save money on your garbage bill. Even little things like making two-sided copies can reduce the amount of paper you need to buy and reduce mailing costs. All garbage haulers in Olmsted County are required to offer recycling collection services to their customers. You can find a list of garbage haulers in the Dex Yellow Pages under "Garbage." You can also bring your recyclable materials directly to any recycling center including the Recycling Center Plus, located at 305 Silver Creek Rd. NE in Rochester. Materials required to be recycled in Olmsted County are: Corrugated cardboard, aluminum cans, newspaper, and glass bottles and jars. In addition, businesses are required to recycle office paper. Other items such as plastic bottles, tin/steel cans, etc., may also be recycled. Check with your garbage hauler or recycling center for a complete list. Olmsted County provides a free Business Assistance Program that helps businesses determine ways to improve recycling, minimize their waste, and potentially save money.

Call (507) 328-7070 for more information or to set up a visit.

Materials Exchange

The Materials Exchange is a free service, which helps prevent usable material from becoming waste by providing a business reuse network. The Materials Exchange service links organizations that have quality, usable goods they no longer need to those who can use them. Items commonly listed are office furniture, construction materials, office supplies, and transportation materials. For more information please visit the website at www.mnexchange.org to list items or to search current listings.

Recycling Center Plus

The Recycling Center Plus (located at 305 Silver Creek Rd. NE, Rochester) offers "one-stop" service to individuals who want to transport their own garbage and recyclables. The operating hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Recyclable items accepted free of charge at the Recycling Center Plus are:

1. Aluminum cans (buy-back)
2. Clear glass bottles and jars (no window glass, dishware, or ceramics)
3. Green, brown, and other colored glass bottles and jars
4. Corrugated cardboard (clean only)
5. Boxboard (i.e., cereal, cake, and cracker boxes)
6. Office paper
7. Newspaper
8. Magazines
9. Telephone books
10. Plastic bottles with necks (only #1 and #2 - no oil containers)
11. Tin food cans, EMPTY aerosol and paint cans
12. Clean scrap iron, aluminum, copper, brass, and stainless steel

The Recycling Center Plus also accepts waste (for a fee) from those who wish to haul their own garbage. Waste brought to the Recycling Center Plus is later transferred to Olmsted County waste disposal facilities. Items accepted for a fee at the Recycling Center Plus are things like:

1. Garbage
2. Appliances (recycled)
3. Bikes
4. Carpeting
5. Computer systems (recycled)
6. Construction materials
7. Drywall
8. Furniture
9. Grills
10. Lawn mowers (empty of fluids)
11. Mattresses
12. TVs (recycled)
13. Tires (recycled)
14. Brush

For more information call Olmsted County Public Works at (507) 328-7070.