Staff report
Sheds, backyards, basements and closets across the county should be a lot cleaner today.
The county’s 3rd Annual Recycling Day drew the biggest response ever.
People waited in line to unload car trunks, pickup trucks and dump trucks.
Lori Swaim, county recycling coordinator, said the final tally included four tractor-trailer loads of tires.
Add to that 600 gallons of used motor oil and 250 computers.The event also netted 2,400 pounds of pesticides, including powder and liquids.
The N.C. Department of Agriculture handles disposal of the pesticides.
A lot of the 250 gallons of paint will go to the Julian Road recycling center, where paint is available free of charge. The Julian Road site is open Monday through Saturday.
“We got a much bigger turnout than we expected,” said Swaim. “Much more than last year. We’ve seen a little bit of everything.”
“People came from all over the county. Several times today we had lines,” said Swaim.
“Thank goodness. This has been cleanup day in Rowan County.”
The event also took in a large quantity of liquid mercury in thermometers and jars.
Staffers had hoped to get some of the mercury that has been around homes for decades, left over from a time when children played with it.
“It was so neat,” said Swaim, recalling playing with it as a child. “We didn’t have any idea it was an environmental hazard.”
The pesticide roundup also brought in a lot of “old and ugly” materials, including various farm chemicals.
Staffers from the county recycling sites were brought in to help at the recycling center on North Long Street in East Spencer.