THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 15, 1994 TAG: 9407140192
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 04 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DEBBIE MESSINA, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 49 lines
Steel cans will now be accepted at the city's 22 drop-off recycling centers.
The cans should be rinsed and flattened before being placed in the recycling igloos. Labels do not have to be removed.
They should be placed in the section for aluminum cans. A magnet will separate the two at the Mount Trashmore II landfill.
The city began taking cans at the drop-off centers after numerous requests by citizens, said Debbie Devine, the city's recycling coordinator.
Steel cans thrown into trash cans are already being separated and recycled at the garbage-to-fuel plant in Portsmouth. More than 100,000 tons of steel from Virginia Beach was recycled in 1993.
Devine said the new arrangement ``is just an extra convenience for our citizens.''
The region's curbside recycling program also collects steel cans.
The cans come in about 600 sizes, shapes and styles. They contain about 2,500 products including fruit, vegetables, soups, condiments, meats, snacks, pet food and juice.
The Steel Recycling Institute set a recycling goal for steel cans of 66 percent by 1995. In 1992, 48 percent was recycled nationwide.
Steel is our nation's most recycled material - more than paper, plastic, glass and other metals combined. That's because of the high recycling rates of steel from automobiles and industry.
Each year, about 35 billion steel cans are produced in the United States, which means nearly 100 million steel cans are used by Americans each day.
The amount of steel recycled today saves enough energy to electrically power about 18 million households for a year.
The drop-off recycling centers are open 24 hours a day, with the exception of the Woodstock Park and Virginia Beach Landfill locations. Also accepted are aluminum cans and foil; clear, green and brown glass; plastic bottles including milk and water jugs; laundry and dish-washing detergent containers; and soda bottles.
For a complete list of locations or for information, call 430-2450; recycling is No. 6 on the menu.
KEYWORDS: RECYCLING by CNB