 Recycling education and monitoring trash levels pays off
A group of residents at Zvago Glen Lake (ZGL), a 54-unit cooperative building in Minnetonka, formed “the Recycling Advocates,” a committee to educate their community on recycling better. After a Hennepin County presentation on recycling, the Recycling Advocates continued to educate residents on their own with great results: increased recycling and decreased trash.
Committee members suspected that trash had gone down so much that the twice-weekly trash collection could be reduced. For four months the Recycling Advocates tracked the volume of trash and recycling in the containers. This tracking was done on the nights before collection by the hauler. They found that the recycling container was always more than half full and the trash container was always less than half full. They then submitted a proposal to the ZGL Board to reduce trash collection to once a week. The Board approved the proposal, and ZGL is now seeing a savings of about $150 per month! ZGL's Recycling Advocates are committed to continuing education on waste reduction and recycling and are now looking to add organics recycling. Nice job, ZGL!
Interested in improving recycling at your building?
Request a recycling presentation by contacting Kirsten Wahlberg at (612) 348-6846 or Kirsten.wahlberg@hennepin.us.
Have your property featured in the Apartment Recycling Newsletter
Email us your property’s recycling success story and you may be featured in one of our newsletters! Contact Kirsten at kirsten.wahlberg@hennepin.us
 Recycle right and encourage residents to bring old or non-working holiday lights to a designated drop-off location for free. Holiday lights should never go in a building’s recycling containers because they get tangled in the equipment at recycling facilities, causing equipment failures and potentially hazardous situations for workers. Have your residents recycle right and bring old or non-working holiday lights to a designated drop-off location.
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Residents in multifamily buildings want to recycle, but they don't always do it right. Hennepin County can help you set up your recycling system and provide educational materials for your residents. Free assistance from Hennepin County can greatly improve your recycling system, making it easier for both managers and residents.
Order free recycling storage bags, container labels, posters and flyers.
Request assistance by emailing kirsten.wahlberg@hennepin.us or by calling (612) 348-6846.
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