Hazardous Waste and Recycling Education
Attention, teachers -- we love to make classroom visits. When we visit your classroom, you will have fun learning about the 3 Rs: Reducing, Reusing and Recycling. To schedule a classroom visit, call 320.255.6143.
Want to see some composting action? Your class or club can schedule a field trip to the composting site in St. Cloud. They prefer at least a two-week advance notice. To schedule, call Doug at (320) 259-6549.
Plan a low-litter (or no waste) lunch challenge in your classroom. Divide your class into two teams. Announce the date of the lunch challenge. The group with the least amount of waste on that day wins! Don't forget a scale to weigh the waste. The prize is up to you!
- Encourage the class to use a reusable lunch bag or box
- Pack your sandwich in a washable, reusable container
- Buy juice, fruit, yogurt in bulk amounts and put your serving in a washable, reusable container
- Use refillable drink containers
Send us a picture of your low-litter lunch challenge!
Educational Resources - Live
Doug Lien is available to speak at civic groups or classrooms. He focuses on “using less stuff” in a consumer’s world filled with more throw-away items than ever.
Doug can also help coordinate tours of recycling facilities throughout the Tri-County area.
For more information or to schedule a tour or speaking engagement, contact Doug at delien@cloudnet.com or call (320) 255-6143.
Educational Resources - Online
Doug Lien is not only a public speaker but also a talented Minnesota artist who's lent his pencil toward a number of comic strips available now for downloading.
Suitable for use with class discussion, as coloring pages, or just for enjoyable reading and good lessons about managing waste responsibly!
Topics:
"Adventures in Spring Cleaning"
"Burning Memories"
"Explanations by a Rocket Scientist"
"Food Recycling"
Grumpy Senior Citizens in "Christmas Complaining"
"How Will Your Garden Grow" or "Grandma Knows Best"
"Life is a Picnic", an entomological tale
"Reused History" part I
"The World of Waste Management in Sports"
"You Light Up My Life"
Some other terrific sources of information are:
Recycling Association of Minnesota
MN Office of Environmental Assistance educational site
Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Minnesota Sustainable Communities Network
Educational Resources - Recorded
The Tri-County Solid Waste Management Commission has a number of video tapes available for loan. Subjects include composting, recycling, waste reduction, hazardous waste and business waste. For more information, contact Doug Lien via email or call (320) 255-6143.
Did You Know?
Did You Know... In one week, the average Minnesotan throws away more than 42 pounds of garbage. In the Tri-County area of Benton, Sherburne and Stearns County the amount of waste generated is over 4,510 tons per week! That’s enough waste for 902 garbage trucks. If we lined up the garbage trucks – it would reach nearly 7 miles. The average amount of trash we generate increases about 2% each year.
Did You Know... Your used oil can be properly disposed of by using one of East Side Oil Company's 8 public drop-off sites. They are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Used oil can be dropped off for free, used oil filters for $0.50 each and antifreeze for $1.00 per gallon. Locations are:
- East St. Cloud (at First Fuel Bank)
- Cold Spring (across from River Power & Equipment)
- Kimball (at A.M. Maus & Sons)
- Waite Park (at First Fuel Bank)
- Sauk Centre (at Truckers Inn)
- Holdingford (at Opatz Metals)
- Melrose (at Toenyan Oil)
- Belgrade (at Rooney Oil)
- Paynesville (by Ice Arena)
Did You Know... As of July 1, 2006 it is illegal for homeowners and businesses to put computers or television sets into their garbage. The cathode ray tubes are banned from all landfills in the State of Minnesota.
Some locations that accept these items are:
- Central Appliance (320) 252-3221
- BFI/Allied (320) 252-0711
- Tom Kraemer Demo (320) 685-8226
- Buecker's City Sanitation (320) 352-5134
- Waste Management (320) 258-3941
- Or call your local garbage hauler for a location near you.
Did You Know... About a gram of mercury enters a 20 acre lake each year. A gram of mercury is only a small drop. A teaspoon of mercury weighs about 70 grams. Mercury is a nerve toxin that may impair the way we see, hear, walk, and talk. Atmospheric mercury mixes with rain and snow and falls into our lakes and waterways. When mercury is deposited into or lakes and waterways, bacteria convert it to methyl mercury. Methyl mercury contaminates the food chain and builds up in the tissue of fish and the wildlife and humans who eat the fish.
Items that contain mercury:
Fluorescent light tubes/lamps
Mercury switches
Mercury vapor lamps
Thermostat probes
Gauges
Please call the HHW facility for disposal options. (320) 255-6140
Did You Know... Disposal of medical waste, and diabetic sharps such as lancets and insulin syringes, is a problem for many communities. Needles that are not thrown away properly are dangerous because used needles can injure innocent people and pass infectious diseases.
In the Tri-County area there are several options for disposing of your diabetic needles. Below, we have listed some options known to us at Tri-County Solid Waste.
Stericycle has a mail-in program for sharps disposal. Call (800) 643-0240 for details.
The City of St. Cloud and ONYX/Veolia will not accept the red Bio Hazard Container. They require you to put the sharps into a puncture proof container (not glass) and tape the cover down and label them diabetic sharps - then the puncture proof container can be put into the green bag - not your recycling bin. If you have additional questions you can reach the City of St. Cloud at (320) 650-2900 or ONYX/Veolia at (320) 251-8919.
Waste Management (WMI) requires customers to call their office at (320) 253-6491 to notify them that a sharp container will be present so they can alert their drivers. They will also require you to put the sharps into a puncture proof container (not glass) and tape the cover down and label them diabetic sharps. Please call WMI with additional questions.
BFI no longer accepts any sharps.
Your sharps container should be:
- Closeable
- Upright and stable
- Puncture resistant (not glass)
- Leakproof
- Properly labeled with the biohazard symbol (shown at right)