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Recycling Center Shows Athens City Council Members How it’s Done
By: Tony Heim
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ATHENS, Ohio – Members of the Athens City Council visited the Athens-Hocking Recycling Center Monday morning to gain a better understanding of the center’s operation. Council members Chris Fahl, Council President Christine Knisely and Patrick McGee joined community members on President’s Day for one of the daily tours of the Material Recovery Center. Executive Director Bruce Underwood conducts the tours, which include up-close looks at the multi-million dollar processing machines, the massive composting area and the company of a pair of friendly dogs. City Council President Knisely said she enjoyed her experience, and said she unaware of how much the facility does for the two counties it serves.
“Just the quantity of the materials being recycled. I was really amazed just to see it, I think it’s fascinating,” she said. “I think what astounds me is that this is a two-county region and the volume of [material processed] it.”
Knisely said she was impressed by the composting area because of the sheer size. According to Underwood, the facility created over 30 tons of soil last year from perishable food items. The process begins in a large pile in the center of a tent; the workers mix mulch and food waste to increase the internal temperature of over 120 degrees. As the mixture degrades it is moved to separate piles to speed decomposition.
The Material Recovery Center has steadily increased its processing since opening 2015. The center receives around 20 tons of material per day, but that number increased to more than 30 tons at the start of 2017. Some of that has to do with other local communities and organizations, like Rural Action, partnering with the center to expand its processing.