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USC Salkehatchie baseball team members pose for a snapshot during the demonstration.
Allendale County Public Works Director James All gives students a live demonstration of cardboard being recycled.
Staff member of Atkore poses with their plastic film recycling bin.
Allendale-Fairfax High School JROTC students listen to the educational presentation by Allendale County Building and Zoning Administrator/Allendale County Solid Waste and Recycling Coordinator Joe Mole.
Members of Scotsman Ice Systems pose with their plastic film recycling bin.
Each year during the month of November, thousands of communities across the country come together to participate in America Recycles Day, a national trademark initiative established by Keep America Beautiful in 1997. It is the only nationally established recognized day dedicated to promoting and celebrating recycling in the United States. This year, Allendale County took part in the initiative by hosting several events in celebration of America Recycles Day.
On Tuesday, November 15, Keep Allendale County Beautiful kicked off the “Plastic to Park Benches” recycling challenge. The county has been challenged to collect at least 500 pounds of plastic film within a six-month period. Local industries and organizations are also participating in the challenge, including Atkore, Archroma, EMD Group, USC Salkehatchie, Queen Wood Products, Scotsman Ice Systems, Southern Palmetto Regional Chamber, Clemson Extension, and SouthernCarolina Alliance.
The America Recycles Day activities and events continued Friday, November 18, as USC Salkehatchie athletes and Allendale-Fairfax High School JROTC members visited the Appleton Recycling Center where Allendale County Building and Zoning Administrator and Solid Waste and Recycling Coordinator Joe Mole gave an educational presentation about recycling within the county. Following the presentation, Allendale County Public Works Director James All gave the students a live demonstration of how cardboard materials are recycled at the center.
Allendale County has a total of five staffed recycling centers, where most centers accept aluminum cans, large appliances, cardboard, farmer oil, oil/gasoline mixtures, scrap metal, tires, and used motor oil, filters, and bottles.
Also attending Friday’s events were Keep Allendale County Beautiful members Barrie Tinsley, Pat Matthews, Anne Rice, Cindy Deer, and SouthernCarolina Alliance’s Graci Hiers.
"It was great to have the young people from USC Salkehatchie and the Allendale-Fairfax Junior ROTC join us at the recycling center for the educational presentation and demonstration in celebration of America Recycles Day,” says Anne Rice, executive director of Keep Allendale County Beautiful.
Allendale County began working with SouthernCarolina Alliance and Palmetto Pride in March 2022 to receive affiliation with Keep America Beautiful. The group has a targeted completion date set for January 2023 and has successfully formed a board of eleven trained members.
“We are very thankful for our local industries, businesses, and organizations that volunteer, participate, and support the new beautification efforts taking place in Allendale County,” says Graci Hiers, SouthernCarolina Alliance’s Regional Beautification Marketing Coordinator. “Not only is roadside litter and the improper use of recycling an eyesore to the community, but it can also discourage economic development by impacting property values. Businesses and industries are more likely to locate in a community that is free of roadside litter and has a successful recycling program in place!”
