A little knowledge and a little attention can make a huge difference in the effectiveness of your recycling, according to Jennifer Semrau, of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. She is leading a free community class – “Know Before You Throw: Recycling in Wisconsin” on March 29 at 6 p.m. at the UW-Platteville Baraboo Sauk County campus. Registration is requested at go.uwplatt.edu/continuing.
“We want to help people understand better what’s a ‘yes’ and what’s a ‘no,’” said Semrau, who leads the DNR’s recycling and diversion-related programs, including implementation and community outreach on recycling statewide. Attendees will get a walk-through of the workings of a recycling program, from pickup to transport to processing, and have a chance to get answers to lots of questions that may have been on their mind. “No, you don’t have to get every single bit of peanut butter out of the jar,” to recycle it, said Semrau.
Items such as appliances, tires and many other materials are in fact banned from landfills statewide, so those rules, plus other local policies and ordinances are important to know, said Semrau, as is the effect improper disposal can have on land and the environment.
“Sometimes it helps to understand the 'why,' and not just the 'what' of recycling, so we’ll discuss those impacts, too,” she said.
The free, public program is presented by the Continuing Education Institute of UW-Platteville, and the Sauk County Department of Land Resources and Environment. An explanation of statewide landfill bans and recycling programs can be found on the DNR website.
Register for the class with UW-Platteville Continuing Education.