have you been to the Beaver County recycling center?

Beaver County Recycling Center

The Recycling Center is a full-service center capable of processing a multitude of traditional and specialty materials. The center is located in Brady's Run Park, and is open Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Wednesdays from noon to 5 p.m., and the third Saturday of every month from 8:30 a.m. - noon.

Recyclables include glass bottles and jars, mixed paper (Take this to Patterson Heights!), corrugated cardboard (This also goes to Paterson Heights!), plastic bottles, aluminum beverage cans, E-waste, glass food jars and beverage containers, used automobile and rechargeable batteries, used ink cartridges, fluoescent light bulbs, scrap metal, residential used motor oil, hydraulic oil, and transmission fluid, residential used antifreeze, and yard waste.

Electronics

Beaver County Recycling Center

The Beaver County Recycling Center is open to Beaver County residents only and accepts the following e-waste for a fee:

cell phones
computers
copier machines
fax machines
hard drives
ink cartridges
keyboards
microwaves
printers
radios
small appliances
televisions
VCR/DVD players

E-waste is serious because:

It's the law. The Pennsylvania Covered Devices Recycling Act (CDRA) states that electronics such as televisions, computers, and tablets--and computer accessories such as keyboards and laptops--are prohibited from landfills or incinerators and must be recycled at approved facilities.
It can be deadly. Electronics waste, or "e-waste," contains toxic materials including:

lead (neurotoxin)

cadmium and beryllium (carcinogens)

brominated flame retardants ( endocrine disruptor)

mercury (neurotoxin and nephrotoxin)

If electronics are not recycled properly, toxins can leach into groundwater or be released into the air. Certification assures these potentially hazardous products aren't sent overseas where substandard conditions may lead to greater negative environmental and health impacts.

Household Chemicals

Beaver County Recycling Center

Other Specialty Materials

Each Pennsylvanian produces an average of four pounds of chemical waste every year. Combined that's 25,000 tons annually.

Common household chemicals include paints, cleaners, automotive fluids, garden chemicals, and more. These products can be identified as toxic by label markings such as "caution, "poison," or "flammable." It is UNSAFE to pour these household chemicals down a drain or to discard them with curbside trash, as toxins may contaminate groundwater and local waterways used for drinking.

Beaver County Recycling Center accepts and responsibly recycles

anti-freeze
fluorescent light bulbs
hydraulic oil
motor oil
transmission fluid

Here are other options for responsibly disposing of household hazardous waste.

Automotive fluids are accepted at many auto body shops.
Latex-based paints -- dry out and place with regular trash.
Environmental Health and Safety Services -- a local business that hosts public drop offs and pickups of many household chemicals. www.ECSR.net

Other Specialty Materials

Beaver County Recycling Center also provides recycling options for the following other specialty materials:

batteries
pallets
polystyrene packaging
scrap metal

Local Resources

Other Specialty Materials

Local Resources

Open to Beaver County residents only

Confidential Shred Days -- Shredding service events are held throughout the year. Find upcoming events at www. BeaverCountyPA.gov/Depts/Wastemgmt or on this website.
Compost Services -- Leaves, brush, and yard waste are accepted at the Beaver County Recycling Center for a fee. Finished compost is available for purchase at the Center.

Other local resources have disposal options for you, including

Appliances (Freon-containing and other) -- heating and cooling companies.
Pharmaceuticals -- police departments.
Propane tanks -- manufacturers.
Scrap metal -- scrap yards and dealers.
Textiles -- thrift stores.
Tires -- tire dealers.

Why recycling?

Recycling Helps Our Economy

Recycling manufacturing involves the conversion of recyclables into new products. The primary recycling industries in Pennsylvania are steel mills, paper and paperboard mills, plastic converters, glass container plants, and nonferrous metal manufacturers. These and other recycling manufacturers employ more than 64,000 people with a payroll of almost $2.5 billion, and annual sales of more than $15.5 billion.

Recycling Creates Jobs!

Recycling Helps Our Economy

Reuse and manufacturing focuses on the refurbishing and repair of products. The largest activities are retail sales of used motor vehicle parts and used merchandise. Reuse and remanufacturing contributes to more than 7,000 jobs, a payroll of more than $115 million, and sales of more than $500 million annually.

And More Jobs!

Recycling Helps Our Economy

And Even More Jobs!

Municipal and private collectors, material recovery and composting facilities, and recyclable material wholesalers employ nearly 10,000 people in Pennsylvania with a payroll of $284 million and annual sales of $2.4 billion.

And Even More Jobs!

Recycling Contributes to State Revenues

And Even More Jobs!

Support businesses that provide goods and services to the recycling and reuse establishments also contribute to Pennsylvania's economy. Recycling and reuse equipment manufacturers, consulting/engineering services, brokers and transporters contribute an additional 13,297 jobs and $1.8 billion in annual receipts.

Recycling Contributes to State Revenues

Pennsylvania tax revenues from recycling and reuse businesses are estimated at $305 million per year.

Recycling Means Business in Pennsylvania

Recycling Contributes to State Revenues

Recycling and Reuse Establishments 3,247

Recycling and Reuse Employment 81,322 jobs

Annual Sales Receipts $18.4 billion

Annual Payroll $2.9 billion

Indirect Benefits $1.8 billion

Taxes to General Fund $0.3 billion

Recycling Works for You!

If I Recycle...

Automobiles, appliances, and cans (steel)

THEY CAN BECOME

Automobiles, wire, and bicycle frames

If I Recycle...

Milk jugs and laundry detergent bottles (HOPE plastic)

THEY CAN BECOME

Decks, lumber, and toys

If I Recycle...

Glass bottles and jars

THEY CAN BECOME

Bottles and jars, glass tiles, and fiberglass insulation

If I Recycle...

Cardboard, office paper, and newspaper

IT CAN BECOME

New boxes, greeting cards, and newsprint.

If I Recycle...

Soda bottles and peanut butter containers (PET plastic)

THEY CAN BECOME

Fleece jackets, fiberfill, carpet, and shower curtains.

If I Recycle...

Tires

THEY CAN BECOME

Flooring, crumb rubber, athletic tracks

Recycling Is Here!

Actually, recycling has been with us for a long time. We recycle things every day without even thinking about it. You put leftovers in the fridge to finish tomorrow. You lend a book or a garden tool to a friend. You might wash out that Cool-Whip container for storing the aforementioned leftovers, and what garage doesn’t have odds and ends of lumber from some previous household project?

Our paper and cardboard collection boxes are in place behind the Borough Building. Called "retrievers," the paper retriever will accept just about any kind of paper, including newspaper, magazines, envelopes, junk mail, and catalogs. The cardboard retriever will take corrugated cardboard. Corrugated cardboard is the stuff that has two layers, with a honeycomb structure between the layers. Most of the boxes you get from Amazon, for example, are made from corrugated cardboard. The non-corrugated, thinner material, like cereal boxes or tubes from toilet paper or paper towel rolls, can actually be thrown in with the paper!

So why should we bother separating this stuff from our regular garbage, when Valley Waste will take just about anything we put out on Monday morning? The State of Pennsylvania is so committed to keeping paper and cardboard out of landfills, that they are actually willing to pay us to separate it.

Here are some interesting facts, 1 through 4 provided by the EPA:

1. In 2011, 2/3 of all paper consumed in the United States was recycled.

2. Every ton of paper recycled saves 3.3 cubic yards of landfill space.

3. Every ton of paper recycled saves 17 trees.

4. Every ton of paper recycled saves 7,000 gallons of water.

5. In 2017 Patterson Heights recycled about 125 tons of yard waste, which equates to 376 cubic yards of landfill space. This yard waste was turned into compost.

6. In 2017 Patterson Heights recycled 90 tons of leaves, which equates to 360 cubic yards of landfill space. The leaves, too, were turned into compost.

In case you don’t care to do the math, little Patterson Heights saved a local landfill from using a space 27 feet long by 27 feet wide by 27 feet deep just last year. Add to that almost 30 tons of mixed recyclables picked up by Valley Waste.

Getting back to Pennsylvania, why would the State pay people to recycle? Unfortunately, land that is available for landfills is not limitless. And most of the people in Pennsylvania don’t particularly want a landfill in their backyard. It is in the interest of the State, and of course, the people of the State, to limit the amount of trash that goes into landfills. Luckily, paper and cardboard are among the things that are most easily removed from the trash stream, and among the things that take up the most space.

Now, Pennsylvania is not going to send us a check each time we fill a box. They will however, pay us back in grant money once we can demonstrate a track record of having a successful recycling program. We can then use the grant money for a new leaf machine, a rotating brush for sweeping and cleaning the roadways, upgrades to the playground—many things that can be used to maintain and enhance the beauty of our community.

Please take advantage of this great opportunity to recycle, for all the reasons listed above. Again, the retrievers are located behind the Borough Building, and you can drive up to them from 7th Street. If you have any questions at all, feel free to call the Borough office at (724) 846-0677, or email the office at pattersonhgts@verizon.net.

Much of the information regarding recycling on this website is from the Pennsylnania Department of Environmental Protection.