Harrisonburg residents, JMU students active in recycling

While recycling on campus may be as simple as taking your trash down to the recycling room, off-campus students must take steps to make recycling possible.

Off-campus residents can recycle through a service from the city of Harrisonburg.

Susan Stevens, office manager of Pheasant Run Townhomes, said tenants can call the city of Harrisonburg and request a bin and a recycling pick-up service.

"They pick it up every Friday morning," Stevens said. The bins are for plastics and cans only. Many off-campus apartments offer this city service to their tenants, some include Stone Gate, South View, the Commons, Ashby Crossing and The Mill.

Another way to recycle items is by taking them to a recycling site in Rockingham County. There are sites at Bergton, Elkton, Mauzy and Waggy’s Creek, which is for Rockingham County residents, and household trash is accepted. "Businesses must take their recyclables to a landfill," said Linda Zirkle, recycling coordinator of Rockingham County.

Cardboard, chipboard, newspapers, magazines, phonebooks, glass, scrap metal and used motor oil are some of the many items accepted at these recycling sites.

Zirkle also said that after Christmas, Christmas trees can be recycled at various locations.

Some off-campus tenants take advantage of recycling. "We have service through the city of Harrisonburg, and we use it and put it out each week," said junior Katie McPadden, who lives in The Mill.

Junior Eddie Campbell, a Stone Gate tenant, said, "I probably would [recycle] because recycling has been ingrained in my head since I was a kid."

Stevens said, "I would say at least 50 percent [of our residents] recycle."

More information on recycling sites in Rockingham County can be found at http://co.rockingham.va.us.