The Tulsa Forum by TulsaNow

Michael, there was a brief presentation at the TCPFA meeting this past Wednesday morning about the new program working with the MET to recycle during the upcoming Tulsa State Fair. Do you have any details about which materials will be collected; most of the discussion was about the massive amount of cardboard that the vendors generate?  

Will there be other opportunities?

We are doing quite a bit of recycling at the fair this year. I hope it all works. The MET has recruited around fifty volunteers to go around and empty bins and work with existing staff. My staff is going to work everyday, especially mornings before the fair opens to the public.

Paula Crain from Expo Square is in charge. We had another meeting yesteday to go over the map and plan.

We are going to put large polycarts at exits and strategic points in the Quik Trip Center and the midway. There will have a large wrapper saying recycle plastic bottles and recycle cans. Meeks Litho has stepped up to be a sponsor. National Waste is providing free dumpsters and compactors. We will also have cardboard compactors put at three locations plus some other cardboard dumpsters at spots through the midway.

We are only doing those two main areas this year to start. If all goes well, every building at Expo Square will recycle every day of the year after this.

We got most of our volunteers through a local environmental artist named Rainbow Girl. She recruits friends from the women's roller derby team and local artists. We also have some people from TyPros and some workers in the sanitation area from the City of Tulsa Public Works.

We will clean and empty the bins each morning, try and check on them every hour and then empty them late afternoon before the evening crowds come.

It is going to be a lot of work. Volunteers are asked to work four hour shifts of hauling big plastic bags of cans and bottles back to a trailer near the security area.

We have never done an event this big in recycling in Tulsa. It is overwhelming just trying to figure out how to get that many people volunteered, with recycling volunteer t-shirts and bags/gloves, tickets, etc. for eleven days in a row.

The credit should all go to Expo Square staff. It is their idea and they have been great to work with. If you see the recycling volunteers at the fair this year, thank them.