Owasso Recycles – Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
The Owasso Recycle Center and Convenience Station was built twenty five years ago damaged the reputation and image of our community and certainly made a bad impression upon visitors. The city’s proposed solution to this problem was to build a recycle center and convenience station where people could conveniently deposit bulky waste and recyclables. As a result, in 1984 the first municipally owned recycle facility in Northeast Oklahoma, and possibly the entire state, was born.
Since then, the Center has grown and expanded to meet the desires of a thriving community and changes in the ecologic waste stream. As the City of Owasso continues its efforts to provide multiple waste disposal options to its citizens, the question becomes: “Why do we as a community desire recycling?” One response is for us to consider our civic duty to protect, preserve, and enhance our environment. As we have all often heard, our planet has limited resources and an increasingly damaged ecosystem. Thus, we must ask ourselves: “What type of an environment are we leaving for our children and future generations?” As citizens each of us may desire to evaluate the personal impact we have upon our environment and what footprint we leave behind as a result of our actions. This type of questioning and ponderance of thought has led us individually and civically to desire services which aim to make a positive impact upon our environment. As such, recycling in our homes and communities becomes the means through which we can promote a clean, environmentally safe city, while also lessening our impact upon the landscape at large. As a community, the City of Owasso made the decision to participate in a responsible, proactive approach to replenishing and revitalizing our local environment by recycling.
Today the Owasso Recycle Center accepts: aluminum, cardboard, glass, newspaper, paper, magazines, telephone books, #1 (PET) plastic, #2 (HDPE) plastic, cooking oil, motor oil, antifreeze and lead acid batteries. In the near future, the center is planning to accept metals, household batteries, tires and e-waste. Yet, as we look down the road, the City of Owasso will continue its mission to provide even more environmentally aware options for its residents and local citizens. In preparing for the future, we should consider our ideal recycling and environmental objectives. In short term planning this might include a redesigned facility with improved public convenience and easy access. It may also include planning for the collection of other recyclables such as Styrofoam, refrigerant recapturing, additional plastics, electronics, fluorescents, and bulky item pickups. Short term planning should also include an improved educational component.
In long term planning, the ideal goal for the City of Owasso would be zero landfill activity. Planning for this objective might include projects and services such as curb side recycling; drop off centers located in parks, shopping centers, and schools; composting (yard waste and organics); and the creation of a materials recovery facility (MRF), a regional transfer station, or a co-generation facility which would convert trash to energy.
While it is not possible for us to conceive what future technologies will hold thirty years from now or where recycling will lead, we as a community should plan for a future that responsibly preserves our environment, protects our resources, and enhances our quality of life in a way our children and future generations can be proud.
The Recycle Center and Convenience Station is located at 499 S. Main St. with the following hours of operation: Tuesday – Friday from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Saturday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Additional information is available on the website; www.cityofowasso.com, or you may contact the Center at 272-4991.
Feedback from readers is welcomed. If you wish to contact the City Manager regarding this blog, send an email to cmanager@cityofowasso.com.