Roots and Rhythm and recycling

Volunteers sorted trash all day and most of the night

By TOM KANE

HONESDALE, PA — The fifth free Roots and Rhythm concert held on June 19 in Central Park in Honesdale was more than just a blast. It was a “green” blast.

For the first time, the festival turned “green” by having all the trash generated by the thousands of attendees recycled.

All through the day and a good portion of the night, volunteers plowed, by hand, through every bin donated by the Waste Management Company of Beach Lake and sorted everything into a “single stream.” Waste Management donated 65 containers to collect the waste, 25 of them for recyclables.

The volunteers were aided by a local solid waste management consulting firm, Corporate Waste Consultants, which specializes in providing businesses with environmentally conscious and cost-effective solutions to reducing waste.

All the waste was sorted for recyclables, which were deposited in a donated recycling dumpster. Throughout the park, well-marked signs reminded festival goers to “think before you throw” and to “please recycle.” It worked.

“The volunteers helped coordinate the effort to make this year’s recycling initiative a huge success,” said Gail Tucker, director of the Greater Honesdale Partnership, one of the principal Roots and Rhythm sponsors.

“Even after the festival ended and the park was cleared, a committed skeleton crew of about seven worked until 1:00 a.m. to assure that every bag in the park was emptied and all of the contents were properly handled and sorted,” Tucker said.

As a result, out of an estimated one ton of solid waste produced, only 0.6 tons ended up in the landfill and approximately 40 percent was successfully diverted for recycling, she said. This included cardboard, glass, aluminum, paper, plastic, liquids, green wastes and food scraps.