I am grateful for the experiences I gained with Tillamook County, and proud of the progress we made during the past eleven years, including:
*During a time of turmoil in recycling markets, we managed to increase the quantity of materials recycled/recovered in our small rural county from just over 10,600 tons in 2012 to over 16,600 tons in 2021 – with the knowledge that each and every one of those tons is truly recycled,
*Our Household Hazardous Waste program is one of the most successful around, keeping over 100,000 lbs of harmful materials out of the environment each year,
*We launched our own Master Recycler class, starting with five students and graduating over 50 dedicated volunteers over the course of six years,
We demonstrated the value of locally recycled latex paint (over 10,000 gallons and counting!),
*Starting with nothing, we developed an organized composting program which now returns the nutrients from about 2,000 tons of yard debris back to our local soil each year, and
*Through an innovative combination of equipment, with grant support, we have collected, compacted, and recycled about 50,000 lbs (a mountain!) of Styrofoam into new products.
I am excited for what is yet to come, as significant upgrades and improvements to our transfer stations move forward, and especially as we prepare to benefit from the infrastructure improvements made possible through the Recycling Modernization Act.
Justin Weiss will be taking over my duties, as well as my phone numbers, as of July 5th.
I’d like to thank everyone who has supported these efforts, and been part of the experience, and I hope that our paths will again cross so that we can again collaborate.
Best regards,
David McCall
Solid Waste Program Manager