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Buncombe ninth in state’s annual rankings

Press release from the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, shared May 21:

RALEIGH – Expanding recycling efforts in North Carolina contributed to last year’s historic drop in its per capita disposal rate, and state environmental officials today recognized Catawba County for its leadership in recycling, as shown in the state’s annual rankings of county per capita recycling rates.

Catawba County earned the top spot in the state recycling rankings, according to data compiled in the 2010-2011 North Carolina Solid Waste and Materials Management Report. Its recycling rate of more than 729 pounds per capita can in large part be attributed to the Catawba County Regional EcoComplex and Resource Recovery Facility, an innovative and interactive network of companies and operations that tries to match waste streams with the need for materials in the manufacturing of new products and energy sources. The on-site use of discarded materials in turn helps Catawba County achieve higher rates of recycling.

“Catawba County and its municipalities set a strong example for other North Carolina communities in the implementation of programs and policies that encourage waste reduction and recycling,” said Rob Taylor, Local Government Assistance team leader for the Division of Environmental Assistance and Outreach. “They do an outstanding job of recovering both traditional recyclables in curbside and drop-off programs, but also other materials like wood and pallets at the County’s innovative EcoComplex.”

Municipal and county recycling programs across the state continue to play an important role in diverting materials from landfills and delivering them to North Carolina’s recycling economy. The 2010-2011 report and analysis of solid waste management indicates that North Carolinians threw away less per capita than at any time in nearly 20 years, largely due to continuing recycling efforts as well as economic conditions.

“One of Gov. Bev Perdue’s top priorities has been and continues to be investing in our economic future and creating jobs,” said Secretary Dee Freeman of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources.  “The growth we’re seeing in public recycling programs such as in Catawba County, brings the welcome news of more materials to North Carolina manufacturers who rely on recycled commodities as their raw materials.”

Features of note related to public recycling efforts during fiscal year 2010-11 include:

Continued growth in the recovery of traditional recyclable materials. Local government programs collected a record tonnage of traditional recyclable materials like newspapers, magazines, cardboard, junk mail, aluminum and steel cans and plastic and glass bottles and jars. This occurred in spite of a weak consumer economy, a trend towards decreased weight of packaging, and the continued decrease in the circulation and size of newspapers.

Plastic bottle recovery in particular has experienced significant growth since the state’s disposal ban became effective on Oct. 1, 2009, increasing 22 percent in FY 2009-10 and 23.4 percent in FY 2010-11.

Increases in the number of curbside recycling programs and the number of citizens with access to recycling collection. During FY 2010-11 the number of publicly operated curbside recycling programs grew for the third year in a row, climbing to 283 total programs from 259 in 2010 and 214 programs in 2009.

Significant growth in local government electronics recycling programs. The number of local governments operating an electronics recycling program has more than doubled in the past five years and will continue to grow in response to the state’s electronics disposal ban and as the demand for the metals and plastics in discarded electronics continues to rise. In FY 2010-11 local governments recycled more than 7,400 tons of electronics including more than 3,000 tons of televisions, a threefold increase over the amount in the previous year.

One way the state measures the overall success of recycling in North Carolina is through its annual ranking of per capita annual recycling rates for each North Carolina county. The total recycling tonnage shown includes materials collected and managed by county programs plus the municipal programs within the county. Yard waste, tires and some special wastes are excluded from the tonnage totals to allow for consistent comparisons from year-to-year.

Access to recycling markets and the commitment of local leaders to waste reduction and recycling both remain important factors in recycling program performance, but the rankings demonstrate success is being achieved by a wide range of communities from mountains to coast and from large populations to small. For more information about public recycling programs in North Carolina, contact Rob Taylor with the Division of Environmental Assistance and Outreach at 919-707-8139.

Rank
County Name
Total Tonnage
Population
Per Capita Recovery (lbs.)
1
CATAWBA COUNTY
56,396.63
154,654
729.33
2
PITT COUNTY
41,769.83
169,378
493.21
3
DARE COUNTY
6,135.43
33,886
362.12
4
ORANGE COUNTY
18,006.10
134,325
268.10
5
SWAIN COUNTY
1,862.13
14,020
265.64
6
MACON COUNTY
4,487.21
33,946
264.37
7
WATAUGA COUNTY
6,352.21
51,326
247.52
8
GUILFORD COUNTY
52,147.91
490,371
212.69
9
BUNCOMBE COUNTY
23,795.90
239,179
198.98
10
BRUNSWICK COUNTY
10,706.41
108,176
197.94
11
MECKLENBURG COUNTY
89,474.39
923,944
193.68
12
CURRITUCK COUNTY
2,186.15
23,559
185.59
13
NEW HANOVER COUNTY
18,530.63
203,439
182.17
14
HAYWOOD COUNTY
5,386.78
59,148
182.15
15
SAMPSON COUNTY
5,490.39
63,481
172.98
16
CAMDEN COUNTY
864.36
10,000
172.87
17
IREDELL COUNTY
13,821.25
160,107
172.65
18
ALEXANDER COUNTY
2,936.47
37,254
157.65
19
CRAVEN COUNTY
7,850.48
104,147
150.76
20
ALLEGHANY COUNTY
811.70
11,171
145.32
21
WAKE COUNTY
61,095.61
907,314
134.67
22
HENDERSON COUNTY
7,058.48
107,177
131.72
23
MADISON COUNTY
1,352.56
20,795
130.09
24
ASHE COUNTY
1,774.45
27,378
129.63
25
JACKSON COUNTY
2,615.89
40,480
129.24
26
MOORE COUNTY
5,582.80
88,594
126.03
27
TRANSYLVANIA COUNTY
2,041.31
33,189
123.01
28
DURHAM COUNTY
16,392.88
268,925
121.91
29
HYDE COUNTY
350.16
5,783
121.10
30
DUPLIN COUNTY
3,300.11
58,729
112.38
31
BEAUFORT COUNTY
2,605.41
47,929
108.72
32
ONSLOW COUNTY
10,021.90
185,304
108.17
33
CABARRUS COUNTY
9,573.68
179,025
106.95
34
PASQUOTANK COUNTY
2,159.27
40,605
106.35
35
DAVIE COUNTY
2,198.78
41,378
106.28
36
PENDER COUNTY
2,785.11
52,504
106.09
37
POLK COUNTY
1,087.46
20,588
105.64
38
MITCHELL COUNTY
820.68
15,588
105.30
39
CHATHAM COUNTY
3,304.35
63,870
103.47
40
PAMLICO COUNTY
659.64
13,136
100.43
41
CHOWAN COUNTY
733.65
14,762
99.40
42
FORSYTH COUNTY
17,260.86
351,798
98.13
43
CARTERET COUNTY
3,258.46
66,712
97.69
44
PERQUIMANS COUNTY
647.55
13,486
96.03
45
CUMBERLAND COUNTY
14,698.44
326,673
89.99
46
NASH COUNTY
4,290.12
96,215
89.18
47
GRANVILLE COUNTY
2,616.03
60,547
86.41
48
BURKE COUNTY
3,738.78
91,008
82.16
49
LINCOLN COUNTY
3,222.85
78,684
81.92
50
WAYNE COUNTY
4,946.62
122,893
80.50
51
SCOTLAND COUNTY
1,429.08
36,098
79.18
52
MCDOWELL COUNTY
1,779.40
45,031
79.03
53
ALAMANCE COUNTY
5,431.16
151,745
71.58
54
UNION COUNTY
7,223.99
202,592
71.32
55
PERSON COUNTY
1,405.95
39,585
71.03
56
HARNETT COUNTY
4,068.04
115,579
70.39
57
WILSON COUNTY
2,860.20
81,643
70.07
58
YANCEY COUNTY
620.96
17,802
69.76
59
LEE COUNTY
2,024.29
58,059
69.73
60
CLAY COUNTY
368.99
10,622
69.48
61
GATES COUNTY
416.40
12,214
68.18
62
ROCKINGHAM COUNTY
3,188.19
93,764
68.00
63
AVERY COUNTY
587.82
17,812
66.00
64
CLEVELAND COUNTY
3,230.24
98,249
65.76
65
LENOIR COUNTY
1,895.33
59,493
63.72
66
DAVIDSON COUNTY
4,982.87
163,488
60.96
67
YADKIN COUNTY
1,164.68
38,451
60.58
68
WASHINGTON COUNTY
399.50
13,224
60.42
69
MONTGOMERY COUNTY
823.79
27,992
58.86
70
GASTON COUNTY
6,063.25
206,384
58.76
71
BLADEN COUNTY
998.90
35,243
56.69
72
FRANKLIN COUNTY
1,697.16
60,978
55.66
73
MARTIN COUNTY
673.89
24,498
55.02
74
ROWAN COUNTY
3,684.80
138,651
53.15
75
SURRY COUNTY
1,945.86
73,791
52.74
76
RANDOLPH COUNTY
3,702.33
142,127
52.10
77
RUTHERFORD COUNTY
1,758.59
68,006
51.72
78
CALDWELL COUNTY
2,031.35
83,176
48.84
79
HERTFORD COUNTY
562.57
24,822
45.33
80
WILKES COUNTY
1,522.59
69,419
43.87
81
VANCE COUNTY
881.48
45,477
38.77
82
JOHNSTON COUNTY
3,269.19
170,151
38.43
83
HOKE COUNTY
861.88
47,376
36.38
84
STANLY COUNTY
1,098.25
60,714
36.18
85
TYRRELL COUNTY
79.15
4,390
36.06
86
WARREN COUNTY
373.77
21,031
35.54
87
STOKES COUNTY
818.53
47,478
34.48
88
RICHMOND COUNTY
781.30
46,600
33.53
89
GRAHAM COUNTY
148.77
8,888
33.48
90
EDGECOMBE COUNTY
938.35
56,681
33.11
91
CHEROKEE COUNTY
438.94
27,527
31.89
92
ANSON COUNTY
372.97
26,973
27.66
93
GREENE COUNTY
218.89
21,277
20.58
94
CASWELL COUNTY
199.94
23,676
16.89
95
NORTHAMPTON COUNTY
131.74
22,111
11.92
96
BERTIE COUNTY
121.78
21,267
11.45
97
JONES COUNTY
55.19
10,159
10.87
98
COLUMBUS COUNTY
255.31
58,204
8.77
99
ROBESON COUNTY
458.04
134,502
6.81
100
HALIFAX COUNTY
139.50
54,627
5.11

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Angie Newsome

Angie Newsome is the executive director and editor of Carolina Public Press. Contact her at (828) 774-5290 or e-mail her at anewsome@carolinapublicpress.org.

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