Festival Recycling Guide

Festival Recycling Guide

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Prepared by Rob PudnerRecycle MontanaAugust 2015

Contents...

Equipment & Supplies... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 2 Bins Trailers VehiclesMaterials... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. 3 Aluminum Plastic Compost Paper CupsCollection...... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...... ... ... .. 4 Vehicles DrainingLiquids Sorting Consolidation/StorageHauling... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... . 4Volunteers... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 5Bin Types .... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 5Bin Locations... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ..... 6Liquids & Compost.. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 6Education... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .... 7 Signs Maps FestivalLiterature MediaReduction... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 7 EliminateCans&Bottles FoodContainers UtensilsDEQ Bin Loan Program... . ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 8 ReserveBins BinSetupInstructions

IntroduCtIonFestivalsgenerateanenormousamountofwaste.Even“green”festivalsgeneratealuminumcans,plasticbottles,foodwaste,pa-pertowels,discardedclothing,brokenchairsandtents,andthelistgoeson.Allofthiswastemustbehauledawayanddisposedofproperly,sowhynotrecoverasmuchaspossibletoavoidburyingitinthelocallandfill?

Byreducingwasteandrecoveringresources,wecanreduceourimpactontheenvironmentandthelocalcommunity.Benicetoyourneighborsandcleanupafteryourself!

2 RecycleMontana.org

Aluminum —Usedmostlyforbeer&sodacans.Cansbebeeasilycrushedandareverylight-weightwhenempty.

Plastic —Usedmostlyforwaterbottlesandsomesodaandjuicecontainers.Bottlesarelightweightandgenerallysafe,butcapsmustberemovedandliquidsdrained.

Compost — Notoftencollected,butamajorpercentageofyoureventwaste.

Cardboard — Asignificantamountisgenerated,mostlybyvendors.Askven-dorstoflattenboxesandeitherdropoffatacentralcollectionpointorleaveinastack(weighteddown)tobecollectedbyvolunteersintheeveningorearlymorn-ing.

Paper — Notoftencollected,butsomevendorswillhavepaperwaste.Eventprograms,schedules,etc.mayalsowarrantpaperrecyclingbinsinkeyareas.

Plastic Cups — Cupsoftenoccupyunnecessarytrashspace.StackingcupsinaPVCpipecanfreeuptrashspace,reducethefrequencyoftrashcollection,andallowcupstoberecoveredforrecycling.Besuretostackcupsupsidedowntoencourageemptyingofliquids.

NO GLASS — Glassisheavy(bagsgetheavyandmayteariftheybecometoofull),canbreakandcausesafetyhazards,andisnotacceptedbymostrecyclingbusinesses.It’sbesttoavoiditwheneverpossible.

MaterIals

RecycleMontana.org 3

Good intentions often drive people to leave non-recyclables near recycling bins in hopes that they will recovered.

Why?Separatedbalesalwayshaveahighermarketvalue.Ifworkingwithalocalrecyclingbusiness,askhowtheywouldlikematerialsseparated.

Sortingrecyclableslaterincreasesabusiness’scosts.

Aluminumcanscollectmorequicklythanplas-ticbottles.Ifseparated,volunteersonlyneedtoemptyonebinateachstationinsteadoftwo.

Canstendtoproduceastrongerodorthanplasticsduetothealcoholicorsugarycontents.

Separationlimitsstrongodorstobagscontain-ingcans.

separatIon

Aluminum cans collect more quickly than other materials

It’s easiest and safest to leave this to profes-sionals. We recommend hiring a local re-cycling business for most events. However, consider the following if you choose to man-age the materials yourself.

EquipmentYouwilllikelyneedatrailertoholdalloftherecyclablesandatruckequippedtosafelypullit.

BalingDependingonthevolumeofmaterialscol-lectedandavailablesourcesofelectricity,itmaybebesttobalematerialsastheyarecol-lected.Ifnot,locateabalertocompactmate-rialsaftertheeventinpreparationforhauling.

BrokerYou’llneedsomeonetobuyyourmaterialsoralocationwhereyoucanstockpileeverythinguntilyoufindabuyer.


ColleCtIonFrequencySendoutvolunteerseveryhourorsotoremovefullbagsfrombinsandreplacethemwithemptybags.Movefull,tiedbagsoutofthewaytobepickeduplater.Instructvolunteerstocarryarollofclearbagssotheycanemptybinsatanytimeduringthefestival.

Draining LiquidsReducebagweight,biohazards,andodorsbytearingaholeinthebottomofbags.Thisallowsliquidstodrainbeforetheyaretossedintoatruckbedorontoatrailer.

VehiclesFirstdecideonyourmethodofcollection(trail-er,wheelbarrow,etc)andthenselectanappro-priatevehicletomatchyourcollectionmethod.Forsmallloads,awheelbarrow,biketrailer,orpickuptruckmaybesufficient.Largerloadsmayrequirealargeflatbedtrailerpulledbyatruck.

SortingDespitepeople’sbestefforts,somesortingwilllikelybeneeded(especiallyinareaswithlesssocialpressuretofollowproperprocedures,suchascampgrounds.Providevolunteersorstaffwithglovesandhavethemseparatemate-rialsintopilesforplastic,aluminum,andtrash.

Consolidation & Storage“Supersacks”arelargewovenbags,usuallyusedpreviouslyforagriculturalproductsandrepurposedtoholdrecyclables.Theyhaveca-pacitytoholdlargevolumesandareextremelystrong.Emptysupersacksarerelativelylight-weightandmustbeanchoredsomehowtopre-ventthemfromblowingawayinagust.Possible sources:agriculturefeedcompanies,seedcompanies.

HaulIng

All materials are collected and stored at a central location

Bottles, cans, & cardboard are stored in separate supersacks on the trailer. Trash is stored in dumpers (rear).

RecruitmentAdvertisetobusinessesandorganizationswithenvironmentalmissions-someencourageout-sidevolunteerwork.

Includeyouradvertisementwitheventpublica-tionsanddigitalmedia

Returningvolunteersareextremelyvaluablebecausetheyarefamiliarwiththeprogram,reli-able,andrecruitfriendstovolunteer.

Socialmediaandemaillist-servescanbeeffec-tivetoolsforrecruitingnewvolunteers.

RegistrationFilltheshiftsyouneedandallowvolunteerstochooseshiftsthatfitwiththeirschedulesbyuti-lizinganonlineprogramsuchasSignUpGenius(http://www.signupgenius.com/)orsomethingsimilar.

Sendoutperiodicupdatesandemailstoremindvolunteersofdates,times,responsibilities,andappreciation.

Providemaps,eventliterature,lodginginfor-mation,schedules,etc.assoonasinformationbecomesavailable.

BenefitsFreeadmissionisusuallytheminimumofferedtovolunteers.•Food/Beveragevouchers•Camping,ifavailable.•Souvenirs•Warmfuzzies!

AppreciationThankvolunteersateveryopportunity-theyhaveadirtyjob!

Publiclyacknowledgeyourvolunteersthroughstageannouncements,digitalmedia,andanyotheravailablemethods.

Volunteers


A volunteer changes out a full bag of recyclables

Volunteers pick up recycling and trash at the end of a long night.

ClearstreamPortabie:Theirwireframescol-lapse&arelightweight.

Easy to set up:Unfoldtheframe,installabag,snaplidontop.

Transparent:Peoplecanseeintotheclearbagsandquick-lyknowtheyareforrecycling.Thishelpswithseparationandreducescontamination.

BarrelsRegulartrash-stylebarrels.Cutroundholesinthelidsforcontainersandchooseblueorgreenforrecycling.

Toter-styleBinswithflip-lidsandwheelsareconvenient,identifiable,andlarge.Downsidesincludecostandportability.

BIn types

Pair with trash — Makerecy-clingeasy!Bypairingrecyclingandtrashbins,guestsonlyhavetomakeonestoptodiscardtheirwaste.Anemptywaterbottlefromonehandcanbeplacedwithrecyclingwhileagreasypa-pernapkinfromtheotherhandcanbeplacedinthetrash.

Not at Toilets — Contami-nationrateswillbeunusuallyhighandpossiblyhazardous. Entrances/Exits — Everyguestpassesthesepointsandmanywishtodiscarddrinkcontainersbeforeleaving.Rulesoftenprohibitguestsfromenteringwithoutsidebeverage,soyou’llneedareceptacleforcontraband. Food and beverage vendors — Thisiswheremostwastematerialsaregenerated.Guestsoftenfinishonebeveragewhilewaitinginlinefortheirnextbeverage,soplacearecy-clingbinneareverydrinkline.

Campgrounds — Festival-goerstendtobringsuppliesinsingle-servingorotherportablecontainersthatmayberecyclable.Socialpressuretorecycleproperlyislowerincampgroundsbecausepeopledon’tfeelasiftheyarebeingwatched.Thiscanincreasecontaminationandoverallmessiness.


BIn loCatIons

Keep trash, plastics, and aluminum separate.

Campgrounds can get messy, but you can still recover recyclable materials.

LiquidsItisimportanttoremoveliquidsfromrecyclingbinstoreduceweightofthebagsandburdenonvolunteers,reducecontactwithgerms,andreduceodors.

Liquidsintendedforhumanconsumptioncauselittleharmtograssandexposedsoil.Encouragegueststopourunfinishedbeveragesontoadesignatedpatchofground.Poundastakeintothegroundatyourrecyclingstationandattachasignpointingdownthatdirectsliquidstothatspot.

CompostMuchofafestival’swasteisuneatenfoodscraps.Firstidentifyacomposterthatwillac-ceptyourmaterial.

Include:Foodscraps,papernapkins,papertow-els,anduncoatedpaperplates.

Exclude:Meatanddairy,whichattractanimals.Avoidlemons,whichcausecompli-cationswithdecomposition.“Compostable”plasticcups,bowls,andutensilsdonotbreakdowninmostcompostpiles-theyrequireintenseheatonlyfoundatsomecommercialfacilities.

Goodsignageiscriticalwithcomposttoavoidtrashsuchasutensils,cups,andstraws.Startbycollectingonlyfrom

vendorsandthenexpandcollectiontopost-consumerwasteonceyouhaveasuccessfulsys-teminplace.

lIquIds & CoMpost

A food vendor wanted customers to know that kitchen scraps were being composted.


Waste reduCtIonReusable Cups — Includeareusablecupwiththepurchaseofbeerorwine.Incentivizereusebydiscountingrefills.

Draught Beer — Usingadraughtsystemeliminatescansandbottlesandencouragesreuseofcups.

Boxed Wine — Althoughthebladdersarenotrecyclable,theoutercardboardboxcanberecovered.Boxesarealsoasafer,lighterweight,

andmorecompactalternativetoglassbottles.

Potable Water on Tap —Encouragegueststobringreusablewaterbottlesandpro-videpotablewater.Youmaybeabletoconnecttocitywaterorbringalargetankwithmultiplespigots.

A water tank mounted on a trailer is used to provide potable water for drinking and spray bottles.

A volunteer fills a cup with boxed wine.

eduCatIonFestival Literature — Inthefestival’sbrochure,pamphlet,newspaper,etc.includeasectiononwasteandrecycling.Mentionwhattypesofrecyclableswillbecollectedandwhere.Noteifguestsshouldbringtheirowncups.Remembertoacknowledgerecyclingvol-unteersandhaulingbusinesses.

Signs — Clear,recognizablesignsmaybethemostimportantpieceofeducation.Beconsis-tentwithlanguageanddesign.Bebig,bright,andsecure(windcanblowprettyhard!).*Imagesoractualexampleshelpwithsepara-tionofmaterials.

Maps — Planinadvancewhereyourbinswillbeplaced.Markthemonamapofthefestivalareaandincludeinliterature,onsignsatyourinformationbooth,andgiveaprintedcopytoeachvolunteer.

Announcements —Throughouttheevent,makeannouncementstobothaskpeopletorecycleandthankthemfordoingagoodjobifallisgoingwell.Thankingvolunteersoverthemicrophonealsoservesasareminderforgueststorecycle.

Language —Beconsistentandstrategic.Languagesuchas“Landfill”ratherthan“Trash”canincreasediversion.

deq BIn loan prograMMontanaDepartmentofEnvironmentalQualityhasrentalbinsavail-ableforyoureventsforFREE!

Availability— Upto40binsareavailable.Callinadvancetoreservethequantityneeded.

Transportation — TransportationforbinsmustbearrangedfromHelena.However,MontanaDEQmaybeabletoassistwithmakingarrangements.

ContactCallMontanaDEQat(406)444-0219tofindoutmoreandreservebins.Applicationformscanbefoundat:http://deq.mt.gov/Recycle/binloan.mcpx


Step 1:Stand facing one of the frame’s Secure Bag Locks (the loops). Place one foot on the bottom rung to stabilize the frame.

Insert empty bag inside of the frame. Using two hands pull approximately 6” of bag through the loop as shown. For best chance of visibility, be sure the printed side is completely facing one of the open ends of the frame

Step 2:Still using two hands, pull the bag 6” over the loop and toward the center, making sure to wrap it around the corners.

Step 3:Let go of the end of the bag and grasp the bag as shown. Pull down and in until it tightens around the corners. The bag will tighten around the Secure-Lock so it cannot slip off.

Step 4:Press down on frame to ex-tend to full opening width. This will make the lid fit snuggly.

Removal:TO REMOVE BAG: Raise bag slightly, unwrap the bag from the Secure-Lock loops and slide it throughthe opening of the frame.No heavy lifting required

Reminders:REPLACEMENT: Bags must be 40” x 46” to properly fit the frame. Bags printed “recyclables only” work the best. Play it safe and overes-timate how many bags you might need. You can always use them at your next event. To order your own: www.ClearStreamRecycling.com

ClearstreM BIn and Bag setup InstruCtIons

Courtesy of Montana DeQ

Step 2Step 4

Rem,oval

Step 3

Festival Recycling Guide

Documents