2009 News

August 25, 2009

With An Assist from County Recycling Committee, Middletown Grange Fair Goes “Even Greener”
More than 3,000 Bottles and Cans Taken Out of Waste Stream

In the weeks leading up to the 61st Annual Middletown Grange Fair, which took place in Wrightstown, PA from August 12-16, Bucks County Recycling Coordinator Art Feltes worked with fair officials and the Wrightstown Township supervisors to implement plastic bottle and aluminum can recycling receptacles for the first time in the event’s illustrious history.

The results of the venture, which evolved from a discussion during a recent meeting of the Bucks Employees Green Initiative (BEGIN) Committee, were impressive. Over five days, fairgoers deposited more than 2,000 plastic soda bottles, 700 plastic milk bottles and 300 aluminum cans. These items were placed in the familiar, blue-rimmed containers that have become a fixture in county facilities since the BEGIN Committee was formed during 2007.

“This participation is a testament to how far recycling has come, and how concerned our residents are with the environment,” Mr. Feltes noted.

To put the numbers in perspective, the recycled soda bottles would provide material for more than 80 T-shirts, or enough carpet to outfit an average-sized room. Further, the amount of energy saved by recycling 300 aluminum cans is enough to power the Grange Ferris wheel for almost two hours.

“I join my commissioner colleagues Jim Cawley and Diane Ellis-Marseglia in extending my thanks to Mr. Feltes, the Grange Fair staff and the Wrightstown supervisors for helping us take this important step,” Commissioner Chairman Charles Martin stated. “We look forward to continuing this program on an annual basis.”

The Grange Fair also was significant as it provided a public forum for the Board of Commissioners to accept the 2009 “Pennsylvania Waste Watcher Award” on behalf of the two dozen employee and citizen members of the BEGIN Committee. The award was presented by the Professional Recyclers of Pennsylvania (PROP), the Pennsylvania Waste Industries Association (PWIA) and the Keystone Chapter of the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA). For more information about recycling in Bucks County, please visit www.BucksCounty.org.