The recycling program in Jefferson continues to be an important aspect for residents to be aware of.

Jefferson City Council member Matt Wetrich encourages everyone to participate in the recycling program, and says it’s important to follow the three “R’s” of recycling: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. He points out that “Reduce” is the most important concept of the three “R’s.” The biggest component of reducing the amount of items that go to the landfill is not using “single-use” plastics. Wetrich explains, “That refers to a water bottle you can bottled water in, or a straw, stuff like that you will use a single time and then throw away or hopefully recycle. So reducing the amount of single-use plastics we have, that is a huge initiative that we are all working on right now in the environmental field. That will by far and away make more of an impact than recycling.”

Wetrich notes that any Jefferson resident can participate in the recycling program. He says to make sure all recyclables are separated by the different categories to make pickup and sorting them out at Genesis easier. He recommends flattening cardboard items and says that no glass items will be accepted. Wetrich reminds everyone to rinse out plastic items.

“You can imagine a dirty peanut butter jar, if that gets mixed into a big batch of plastic they’re trying to grind up to recycle, that will ruin the entire batch and then all of that has to go to the landfill.”

Wetrich says the recycling bins are free for residents and can be picked up at City Hall. A recycling schedule magnet is also available for free at City Hall.