Recycling to begin in Rexburg
- posted: 09 Oct. 2007
- scrollnews@byui.edu
Rexburg recently joined thousands of other cities across the nation in developing a community recycling program.
“It’s a benefit to the community,” Mayor Shawn Larsen said. “There was just something missing in the city of Rexburg.”
After receiving tremendous positive feedback last spring over a newsletter highlighting this idea, Larsen and other leading officials collaborated with towing company Barney Towing and Recovery to make this idea become a reality.
“We take [recyclable material] to our company, where it is processed, baled, loaded up on semis, and then sold to larger recycle brokers,” said DJ Barney, owner of Barney Towing and Recovery. “We donate a portion to the [Rexburg] parks and recreation department.”
The United States has doubled its recycling in the past 15 years, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. In 1999, recycling prevented 64 tons of garbage from entering landfills, mostly due to small communities taking action.
“There are a lot of things we can do, but it’s a start,” Larsen said.
Blue recycling bins have been placed in the Broulim’s, Rexburg Library and Wal-Mart parking lots, and Larsen has been working closely with BYU-Idaho to get even more bins available on campus.
In each location, besides having a place for paper, newspaper and cardboard, two other bins are available. One, marked with a number one, is for water and soft drink bottles. The other, marked with a number two, is for milk, detergent and shampoo bottles.This distinction will make it easier for recyclables to be processed later.
“We all need to do our part to conserve and recycle, and to conserve the beautiful resources in this community,” Larsen said. 
