Fwd: [No Incinerators in Maryland] Thanks "west coast" people!

[Caroline Eader]

Please read these Facebook posts from the bottom up and you'll see why I'm thanking all of you who are showing the rest of the world about resource management done right - reduce/reuse/recycle!

Patrice Gallagher commented on George Wenschhof's post in No Incinerators in Maryland. Patrice Gallagher 4:27pm Sep 5 It takes a lot of gumption to be open to changing one's mind, and then be willing to publicly admit it — I admire that, George. Thanks for sharing your experiences. Comment History Caroline Eader 3:42pm Sep 5 Wow, George! Thanks so much for sharing your insight. We now share a similar experience - living a lifestyle which is moving us towards a new way of thinking. What was once "trash" or "garbage" is looked at as a resource stream. I remember when you were plenty mad at me for not supporting the idea of a new landfill, so I am very grateful you've reached out to me in this way. Safe travels! George Wenschhof 3:02pm Sep 5 I have always supported recycling efforts, but was dubious as to how effective they would be. I now see the much impact a combined effort can have on a community. George Wenschhof 2:55pm Sep 5 Hi Kimberly, for your information, I never supported the building of an incinerator in Frederick County. I did wish to see more serious consideration given to the construction of a new "state of the art" landfill. Kimberly Mellon 1:23pm Sep 5 I am so happy to read this! Like so many of us taking a second more critical look at the incinerator, given the new data and emerging technologies, I always knew you would come around on this George. Thank you! :0) Original Post George Wenschhof 11:56am Sep 5 Hi Caroline, Wanted to reply to you in a more appropriate venue in response to some of your Facebook postings last night on my posts on the Democratic Convention. I've been spending the summer on the west coast and have had my eyes opened in many government service areas, including the disposal of waste and the use of recycling. While, most communities ultimately rely on a landfill (capture of methane and other "modern" techniques are utilized), recycling is all more common everyday stuff here than back home [Frederick, MD]. Plastic and glass bottles have a 5 cent extra charge when purchased which is redeemed when returned to a recycling machine. Which, is an automatic machine that crushes the item and spits out the change. They are everywhere, most often located outside a food store. Interestingly, this has created some "dumpster diving", where someone down on their luck, goes through the garbage to find bottles to return for the change. No one seems to mind this practice, as the bottles are ultimately recycled and the money, while maybe not that much, goes toward helping someone in need. It seems all the family homes I have visited have some sort of composting taking place, some with a decorative style and flagrance container in the kitchen and then a larger container outside, that is disposed at compost areas. Trash pick up is weekly with no complaints. Recycling is also common place at restaurants, even the luncheon Delis. Clearly, an incinerator and the outrageous cost associated with building and maintaining it, is not the answer for Frederick County. Forgive the length of this message. I'll look you up when I return home. Keep up the good work. George Caroline Sustainable = Harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged.