Speak out on countywide recycling

RBC I Some county residents take their recycling to Grand Junction or Rifle. Others drop off cans, paper and cardboard in Meeker at the  town’s recycle drop-off center. Rangely currently has no recycling program.
Yampa Valley Data Partners (YVDP), a regional nonprofit, has been working on a regional energy education plan which includes goals for waste reduction, recycling and composting. Community leaders from Rio Blanco, Moffat and Routt counties worked together to formulate the plan. Recently,  YVDP applied for and received a supplemental environmental project grant from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to assess the feasibility of improving access to recycling in Rangely and adding to the materials accepted in Meeker.
Rio Blanco is a rural county with a lot of land and low population density. Often it is difficult to make the financial aspects of sustaining a recycling program work. The way to make a countywide recycling program work is to make sure the volume of recycled material equals or surpasses the cost to handle, transport and sell the recycled material.
To give your opinion on the feasibility of recycling in Rio Blanco County you can complete the eight-question survey provided by YVDP as an insert in this edition of the Rio Blanco Herald Times. The survey is also included in the Rangely utility bills, available at the chambers of commerce, town halls, or online at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/FS3YKNR. To return the paper survey, mail to P.O. Box 1641, Craig, Colo., 81626; email to [email protected], fax to 800-708-6741, or drop off at boxes placed around town by April 1.