At Sedona Recycles we sometimes take it for granted that everyone living in Sedona knows where we are, what we do and what we accept. Of course with new people moving into town all the time and a constant stream of visitors this just isn’t true. So the time has come to introduce Sedona Recycles (SRI) to all of you who are new to the area or visiting and reintroduce ourselves to those of you who have been here for a while.
As a community that is made up of full time residents, part time residents and visitors we all look at recycling from a different perspective but one thing we have in common is that the number one priority for recycling is convenience. We are looking for it to be uncomplicated with the hope of getting the best result. This is not as easy at some would lead you to believe it takes real effort on all our parts to be truly responsible recyclers. Our goal at SRI is to make it as easy and painless as possible to recycle but in reality it is a group effort and will take some work on your part. Hopefully the information in this article will make recycling a part of your everyday life.
Sedona Recycles began 25 years ago as an all volunteer organization and has grown substantially since our humble beginnings. We now operate a material recovery facility in Sedona and service 21 drop-off recycling sites in Sedona and the VerdeValley. Last year we processed nearly 4,000 tons of material that is 8 million pounds. Our facility located on Shelby Drive is open 7 days a week from 8:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. with the bins in the parking lot and at all our drop-off locations available 24/7. We have 5 free drop-off sites in Sedona in addition to the facility with locations in the Uptown public parking lot, the PosseGroundsPark, Mountain Shadows and 89A, Saddlerock Circle and 89A and Upper Red Rock Loop Road and 89A. SRI is a nonprofit organization (501 c 3) with an educational mission which involves working with all the area schools to provide tours, presentations and equipment to increase the awareness of the importance of recycling as part of the city’s overall sustainability program. We provide free recycling for special events and you will frequently see our green bins when attending festivals and gatherings in Sedona and the VerdeValley. We are available by phone seven days a week to answer any question you might have about disposal or recycling. If we don’t have the answer we will work hard to find it for you. Our website is full of information and we continue to work on improving it to make things easier for everyone to access recycling information. If your club, service organization or home-owners association would like us to give a presentation just give us a call at 204-1185. One thing to always keep in mind is that Sedona Recycles business and mission is recycling. We are not a trash company, recycling and recycling education is all we do. We collect the standard materials: cardboard, paper, plastics 1-7, aluminum and steel cans and glass but we also take it a step further by collecting and processing Styrofoam making us only one of a handful of facilities nationwide recovering this bulky material which is estimated to take up 25% of all landfill space. In addition we collect and recycle household batteries, electronics, chip bags, candy wrappers, ink cartridges, corks, clothing, Brita water filters, books, shoes and golf balls. These are not the typical materials collected by recycling facilities but we are not your typical recycling facility. As a nonprofit facility we see things differently. Our goal is always responsible resource recovery.
In addition to our staff of 10 full and part time employees we have been employers of developmentally disabled adults from Rainbow Acres for the last 13 years. This partnership is the cornerstone of our sorting operation. Along with 2 members of our staff a team of 4 to 5 ranchers come 5 days a week to do the intricate sorting of plastics and cans. These are the only materials that we collect together to avoid the public having to do this complicated separation. The ranchers and our staff separate this mix into 8 categories which assures that the materials have the best chance of becoming a new product. The ranchers are at the facility from 8:30 to 12:30 and we invite you to come by for a tour to see how things are accomplished with our exceptional sorting crew. Our doors are always open to you no need for an appointment just come in and enjoy the opportunities for reuse that exist in our lobby which include: magazines, packing peanuts, bubble wrap, glass jugs and blue bottles, nursery pots, egg cartons and moving boxes. If you want to leave a donation we would appreciate your support. We are proud to be your community recycling center and we will continue to look for more ways to help you reduce, reuse and recycle.