Recycling aluminum cans, paper and plastic bottles is about to get easier and cleaner for the Audubon Estates community in Hybla Valley. Thanks to the community’s partnership with Fairfax County, 700 new 35-gallon collection carts were recently delivered to the neighborhood at no cost to residents.

For years, residents of Audubon Estates – a community of approximately of 700 manufactured homes – have voiced their need for recycling containers with lids for curbside collection. The community’s private trash hauler will not provide its customers recycling bins or carts, and the cost to purchase lidded carts was a barrier to many residents. Until now, the residents have taken recyclable materials to the curb in any container they may have. Waste material easily falls out of unlidded containers, often from storms or curious wildlife, resulting in unsightly littered streets.

Two Fairfax County agencies – the Department of Public Works and Environmental Services (DPWES) and the Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination (OEEC) – heard residents’ concerns for a cleaner community and worked together to provide 700 new lidded recycling carts using Fairfax County’s Plastic Bag Tax fund. The five-cent tax is charged to retail customers in Fairfax County for using disposable plastic bags.

Since 2002, the Plastic Bag Tax has generated close to $11 million in revenue, funding programs and initiatives that benefit the environment, such as cleanup programs, pollution and litter mitigation programs, and educational programs on environmental waste reduction. DPWES applied for funding to purchase the 700 carts for Audubon Estates.

Each blue recycling cart is imprinted with instructions on the materials that should be placed in the cart. Each cart lid is imprinted with a QR code that goes to Fairfax County Solid Waste Management’s recycling web page. The page features an easy-to-use “Waste Wizard,” which helps people decide what to do with specific waste items.

The recycling carts for Audubon Estates – valued at about $43 each – is one of approximately 12 Earth-friendly projects funded by the tax.

“Lending a hand to help solve a recycling problem is an example of what great things can happen when county agencies work together to support residents,” said DPWES Deputy Director Eric Forbes, Solid Waste Management. “We thank all of our county and community environmental champions for helping us get closer to Fairfax County’s zero-waste goals.”

“The Audubon Estates community cares deeply about beautifying their neighborhood, preserving quality of life, and being stewards of the environment,” said Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk. “DPWES has been a valued partner in helping them do just that, and this is another example. When county agencies work together like DPWES and OEEC have, the outcomes for Fairfax County residents are even greater.”