Lee County Solid Waste

Lauren Jump -

I thoroughly enjoyed the very last field trip of my educational career.  I was quite surprised by the efficiency of Lee County’s waste removal system.  Being the most sustainable system in all of North America is pretty impressive.  Before the visit I thought burning trash was bad- I can’t believe how wrong I was.  I hope more counties implement our type of system.  Curiosity was raised as to how the funds are all allocated.  It seems like with a system like that taxes shouldn’t have to be spent on its’ existence.

Calvin Thornton -

I was impressed by the overall efficiency that the plant seemed to provide. I like how they seem to burn everything with minimal emissions and how the trash is sorted through by magnets and other means to separate things of value. The only thing I regret is not asking how the fire is initiated or maintained. I understand that fire burns the trash, but it just doesn’t seem to make sense to me that it continues to burn of its own accord without needing additional fuel with a lower ignition point than garbage. I’ve never tried to catch banana peels or miscellaneous plastics on fire, but it seems to me that it would require a lot of energy to initiate the burning process with any sustainability.

Alexandra MacLean -

This last field trip was impressive, i learned so much. i really thought that we were going to a dump but we were not. The way that they burn everything with almost no emissions is impressive. I also like how they run most of their equipment with there own fuel, i have been looking at the trucks this past week and have noticed the print that tell people what kind of gas the truck runs on.

Ishadeen Abreu -

Our last trip was very informative.  I was very surprised and happy to know that there aren’t any landfills in Lee County.  I also didn’t know about that there is a location on metro parkway where you could throw away hazardous waste.  On the bus trip up I definitely didn’t picture that it would look as it did, can’t say the same about the smell unfortunately.

Anna Dyson -

This field trip was highly informative and eye opening. I never knew how efficient Lee county is at managing their solid wastes. We learned about the FOUR Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover. I did not realize how inefficient Collier county is with handling their solid waste. Apparently most everything just goes in a land fill and will remain there for hundreds of years....or it could be RECOVERED and converted into electricity. I am so happy to know there are counties and groups of people out there that are taking large steps in making this planet a better place for our children and our children's children. Sustainability in action!