Group wants parish, city to increase efforts
Laura Bond, Reporter
03-16-2010
Lincoln Parish has a few businesses that accept materials for recycling and several recycling bins scattered throughout the area in select locations.Some residents, however, would like to see an increase in current efforts of both individuals and local government leaders to make recycling a priority.
“I’m from Ruston, but I lived in South Carolina, where they had curbside recycling,” Louisiana Tech University graduate Laura Hunt said. “When I came back here I was like ‘Wow.’ This is kind of disheartening. I see apathy in Ruston, where people love the community, but don’t want to (recycle).”
Hunt was one of about 25 residents who gathered inside the Thomas Assembly Center Waggoner Room on Monday evening to hear Jacques Privat discuss how a comprehensive recycling center was implemented and operates in St. Martin Parish.
Privat is employed by the St. Martin Parish government as the recycling coordinator and solid waste supervisor. For 18 years, the parish has maintained a recycling materials drop-off facility — located in a 10,000 square foot warehouse — that accepts residential and commercial materials, such as cardboard, milk and water jugs, detergent bottles, tin and aluminum cans and colored and clear glass.
“About half our materials we receive from residential and half from commercial,” Privat said. “We receive tin cans and jugs from restaurants and shredded papers from banks.”
Martin Parish partners with ARC — an association that works with mentally challenged individuals — who provide labor to bundle collections. Inmate labor is also utilized.
In order to open a recycling center, Privat said a forklift and baling machine are necessary. Privat said Keep Louisiana Beautiful might provide grants to pay for such equipment. Excluding his salary, Privat said the recycling center costs a few hundred dollars each month to operate. However, he said it generates between $20,000 and $30,000 each year, which pays for labor, utilities, fuel and equipment maintenance.
St. Martin Parish also has curbside recycling available in the unincorporated areas and in one of its municipalities, Privat said.
Bobby Dowling, former Lincoln Parish Police Juror and RecycLINCOLN leadership team member, said St. Martin Parish was comparable in size to Lincoln Parish, and what has been done there is possible here.
“We need to advocate for the Police Jury and city for recycling efforts,” Dowling said. “I really believe if we don’t get a recycling center soon, we’re gonna have trouble with that.”
RecycLINCOLN member Kay Bradford said efforts should be put in place as soon as possible.
“We just need to start and set the bar high, even if some people are not going to (recycle),” she said.
Lincoln Parish Police Juror Roy Glover, the lone elected official in attendance, said he showed up simply to “spectate,” and opted not to make a statement.
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Want to join the group?
RecycLINCOLN is a community group that serves to raise awareness of the need for recycling and encourages community-wide recycling efforts. To join the group, or provide suggestions or comments, e-mail recyclincoln@gmail.com.
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