Recycling Superstar contest won by LFP resident

Sharon Blackadder, LFP

 from the LFP Towne Crier

The creative talent of King County residents has been brought to light with the King County Solid Waste Division’s "Recycling Superstar" contest, in which people shared their ideas on how they go the extra mile to recycle items, rather than throwing them in the garbage.  (see original story)

Lake Forest Park resident and top prize winner Sharon Blackadder says recycling is second nature in her household. She recycles pizza boxes and other food scraps and food soiled paper along with her weeds and ivy in her curbside yard waste cart.

When she's done recycling her milk and juice containers, cardboard and other recyclables, there's very little garbage left and it all fits into the smallest garbage container Blackadder’s garbage hauler offers.

For their efforts, five people who submitted recycling tips during the August 16 to September 14 online contest have won great "experience" prizes, including a trip to Victoria, tickets to a Seattle Sounders game, and more.

Surveys have shown that while most King County residents do recycle, more than half of what ends up at the County’s Cedar Hills Regional Landfill can easily be recycled. Food scraps and food-soiled paper, both of which can be placed in the curbside yard waste cart for recycling, make up more than one third of residential garbage.

"We knew there were some serious recyclers out there who are really going the extra mile to recycle all they can," said Gerty Coville, King County Solid Waste Division project manager.

"The stories they tell really illustrate how easy and fun it can be to recycle more and recycle better at home."

A panel of King County recycling experts judged the entries based on "accuracy and level of recycling effort, creativity and detail."  The Recycling Superstar contest is sponsored by the Division’s "Recycle More. It’s Easy to Do" campaign to help reduce the amount of recyclables that end up in the landfill.

For more information about recycling in King County, visit their recycling website and food recycling website.