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The "Art" of Recycling
The town of Great Barrington, Massachusetts, has had many impressive firsts in American history. It was home to the first armed resistance against the British in 1774; home of the first freed slave in 1781; and, home to the first main street with electric lights in 1886. The town’s latest development is its first public recycling program, called “The Art of Recycling.” The town’s streets are now lined with 15 works of art, such as a dinosaur, filing cabinet, and copper piping that hold community recycling bins.
Great Barrington’s interest in a public recycling program began in 2005. The town teamed up with the Center for Ecological Technology (CETSM), a Massachusetts-based nonprofit organization, which conducted a pilot recycling program to test 15 off-the-shelf recycling bins placed in the downtown area for the collection of bottles and cans. The pilot worked. An overwhelming majority of residents and visitors used the recycling bins. Subsequently, they formed a committee to recruit local artists to design recycling bins, which had to be made from at least 90 percent recycled material taken from a local salvage yard. A separate fundraising effort raised $18,000 to support both the participating artists and pay associated costs.
The bins were unveiled at a local art gallery on September 4, 2006, and were then placed on the streets. The town has welcomed its new resident bins and, according to Jamie Cahillare, CET’s director of recycling services, the bins are “filling up quicker than expected.” The proof of the program’s success is in the town’s collection truck—in preparation for the recycling program, the truck was originally divided into one-quarter space for recyclables and three-quarters space for waste. After the first collection, the truck now dedicates three-quarters space for recyclables and one-quarter space for waste.
Great Barrington’s “Art of Recycling” program demonstrates the potential for creativity and community involvement, and is the kind of project promoted by our national Recycle on the Go campaign. Great Barrington is operating the type of community-minded recycling program encouraged by our Resource Conservation Challenge within the national priority area of Municipal Solid Waste Recycling.
For More Information:
- Resource Conservation Challenge national priority area: Municipal Solid Waste Recycling
- Recycle on the Go
- CET
Art of Recycling Web page
