Congratulations Lyon County! We were able to recycle 200 tons of recyclables, which means we saved 200 tons of potential trash from going to the landfill from the period of March 22 to April 22. Great job! We also received some great news from Millennium Recycling in Sioux Falls. This is the company that receives our recyclables. Millennium’s contamination rate is 5%. A contamination rate is the percentage of things that end up in recycling that are not supposed to go into recycling. In comparison, the contamination rate of Minnesota is about 35%. However, even with this great news, we have work to do!

We are having problems with folks dumping furniture, microwaves, dehumidifiers and trash at our recycling rolloffs and sheds in our communities. Dumping is against the law. This past week we have found dressers, microwave ovens, dehumidifiers, trash, small LP tanks for grills, and light fixtures either in or setting outside the rolloffs. The one rolloff that is experiencing more problems than most is the recycling rolloff located at the old County Fair building. Please remember it wastes our current recycling contract holder’s time as well as county employee’s time in cleaning up someone else’s mess.

Furniture, if it is no longer usable, should go to the landfill. Microwaves and dehumidifiers should also go to a collection point at the landfill. These and other appliances cost $15 to dispose of them. Light fixtures, if they still work, could go to the ReStore and small grill sized LP tanks can go to the Household Hazardous Waste facility in Marshall. They are free to get rid of there. It is each and everyone’s own responsibility to dispose of items they are no longer using.

If you are a resident who lives in a building or a complex with six or fewer apartments, you should have your own recycling cart. If you live in a rural setting or an apartment, the recycling rolloffs or sheds in your community are there for you to use. Businesses need to provide their own recycling. This includes cardboard. You can do this by calling your current trash collector for pricing and availability. Businesses are not supposed to use the rolloffs or recycling sheds. If you need further assistance with this, please give me a call. It is important to use our rolloffs and sheds correctly or they will no longer be available for those who are recycling outside of city limits. Recycling is not free in Lyon County but rather assessed through the solid waste fee on property taxes. This is why businesses should not be using the recycling rolloffs or sheds.

As you probably have heard, Lyon County will be able to recycle Styrofoam later this summer. Please be aware that it is not allowed in the recycling carts now. We have had a rash of Styrofoam show up in the carts. Styrofoam should be thrown into the trash or you can chose to save it for our newest recycling program. Styrofoam will only be recycled by bringing it to the Public Works building. It will not be accepted into our recycling carts, rolloffs or sheds. Watch for future announcements on this exciting new program for Lyon County!

You can now find our recycling guide posted on the Lyon County website in English and Spanish. You can also follow our Facebook page. For more information, you can reach me at 507-532-1307 at the Environmental Department or you can call the Landfill at 507-865-4615. The Environmental Department is open from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. The landfill hours are Monday-Friday, 6 a.m.-4 p.m. and Saturdays from 7 a.m.-noon. The landfill is located just off of MN State Highway 23, south of Marshall and Lynd.