Going green goes strong: Sorting through recyclables at the 2018 Alaska State Fair

PALMER— The Alaska State Fair is done for the season. Thanks to the efforts of several environmentally-conscious volunteers, tons of the fair’s aftermath trash was successfully sorted through, separated and on the way to the Valley Community Recycling Solutions center to be re-purposed.

The ASF has a few recycling-specific roles and the man-power comes mostly from about 20 volunteers a day, each season.

According to ASF Recycling supervisor Larry Bador, the total amount of recycled materials gathered clearly grows each year. He is confident that this year will not break the trend and exceed last year’s results.

“It’s incredible, how much cardboard we collect each year,” Bedor said.

Last year, they collected 15.3 tons that was delivered to VSCRS. The top three categories of recycled materials were cardboard, mixed paper plastic bottles. Bador said that these numbers should be reflected in the final 2018 results. He said that cardboard will always be the top category, hands down. He walked over to a dumpster that looked to be about 20 yard long. He said that during the fair, it gets filled every day.

“We couldn’t do this without our volunteers. They work so hard,” Bador said.

Molly Boyer, VSRC director, was one of the returning ASF recycling volunteer crew. On the last day of the fair she donned a yellow safety vest, rubber gloves and sunglasses for the beating sun. She busily sorted through mounds of plastic bottles as a middle-aged volunteer with a gray ponytail and ball cap pulled in with a few bags, teeming with plastic, inside a green wagon labeled, “Recycling Team.”

“I’m just helping,” Boyer said.

The ASF recycling station is behind Raven Hall tucked in a dirt road corner, near Hermon Brothers Field. There’s a small office with pop-up tents, connex, dumpsters, and so on, forming a recycling hub.

Bador was happy about pulling in so many recyclables, but she also wanted implore everyone to do even more recycling next year. There’s three parts to the triangle of reducing waste.

Recommended tips to reduce waste include, aside from throwing bottles, cans and so on in the designated green barrels, fairgoers can also reduce and re-use while enjoying themselves at the fair.

For example, instead of buying plastic water bottles, you could pack your own water in a reusable container. Experts also say another way to reduce waste could also mean using less plastic cutlery from vendors and instead, bringing your utensils. They recommend visiting the green school house by the agricultural building for more recycling advice, it’s sole purpose is to educate the public, young and old about how they can reduce their carbon footprints, at the fair and year-round.

2017 recycling numbers delivered to VCRS by category:

Plastic PETE #1 Bottles: 1,601 pounds / .8 tons

Plastic HDPE #2 Jugs: 336 pounds / 0.2 tons

#5 Containers: 42 pounds

Plastic film: 188 pounds / 0.1 tons

Cardboard: 24,976 / 12.5 tons

Mixed paper: 2,320 pounds / 1.2 tons

Aluminum cans: 952 pounds / 0.5 tons

Steel Cans: 124 pounds / 0.1 pounds

Aluminum Foil: 66 pounds

Grand total: 30,606 pounds / 15.3 tons