www.statista.com reports that municipal solid waste generation in the U.S. from 1960 to 2018 ranged from 88.1 to 292.4 million metric tons a year, and it is projected to increase to 3.4 billion metric tons by 2050. According to www.intelligentliving.com proper waste disposal is an essential component of sustainable living. By managing our waste effectively, we can reduce our environmental impact and conserve resources for future generations. Henry County waste disposal comes in different forms and from a variety of businesses including Golden Valley Disposal, Henry County Industries, and the City of Clinton’s Wastewater Department.
Golden Valley Disposal LLC, on 400th Road, Clinton, picks up residence trash weekly (Monday through Friday) with a maximum of five bags per household. Trash must be on the road by 6 A.M. It also offers commercial dumpster and roll-off service on Saturdays. Trash is off-loaded to the transfer station and further transferred to a landfill in Warrensburg. People without a trash pickup service can also take their waste to the transfer station, as well as contractors. For a list of materials not accepted go to www.gvdisposal.com. The busiest time for trash pickup according to a Golden Valley Disposal representative is in the spring and summer when there is a lot of construction work resulting in extra waste. Holidays observed by the disposal business include New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Henry County Industries at 516 Price Lane in Clinton, provides recycling community bins at its facility. They provide pick-up for businesses which usually recycle paper, cardboard and sometimes cans and plastic. It does not take shredded paper and books but will accept clothing during business hours.
“We have a broker out of Joplin who takes our goods and distributes them to different recycling mills,” said Director Carley Ross. “Some of these mills are in Arkansas and a lot of paper is sent to Boonville. A few years ago, recycling had a decline (apparently when China banned the import of most plastics and other materials headed for that nation’s recycling processors.)” But now it is improving. Businesses can receive recycling pickup by purchasing a membership for $25 a month to help cover the cost of fuel. We pick up some recycling in Benton County including schools.”
The City of Clinton’s Wastewater Department is located at 1102 S. Vansant (south of the big cemetery). Residents can take their yard trash there for disposal.
According to www.statista.com, the U.S. recycling system faces many challenges. There is no federal law that mandates recycling in the country, so there is only localized legislation through city or state governments. Almost 10 percent of the population lacks access to recycling services, and we have some of the lowest municipal waste recycling rates worldwide. However, the rate of waste being recycled has increased every year since 1960 reaching nearly 68 million tons.
Recycling rates in Missouri were reported to be at 43 percent of materials available, according https://recyclingpartnership.org. The top two recycling states are Main with 67 percent and Oregon with 60 percent, and the lowest three are Kentucky with 23 percent and Alabama and Tennessee at 22 percent.
