History of Green Fest's sponsor:
Boonsboro Recycling Task Force

Task Force members are Chair Rosemary James*, Secretary Amy Jones* and members Sean and Leslie Haardt, Harvey Hoch*, Frances Lynch, Amanda Maynard, Brigitte Schmidt*, Laura Schnackenberg*, Janeen Solberg*, Kathy Vesely* and Barbara Wetzel*. County liaisons are Cliff Engle and Tony Drury. (*Asterisk indicates founding member)

The initial impetus which put the 10-member Task Force into motion was the loss of the residents’ only means to recycle - a dumpster provided through a Washington County program. The town government had been forced to discontinue hosting the bin because the remote site was being used as a dumping ground for much more than recyclables.

The group's first goal was to work with the town to reinstate the county's recycling bin program by finding a suitable location for the dumpster.

Recycling returned - On Dec. 22, 2007, some four months later, recycling was returned to Boonsboro, as the recycling dumpster began operations at its new site - in the Park-n-Ride at the intersection of Alt. Rt. 40 and Rt. 67 in the town’s south end. Two years later, in November 2009, a second dumpster was added by the county to help take care of the overflow at this very busy site. 

A common site at the recycling area before the second dumpster was added. Recycling increased more than 40 percent in 2010, the first full year the site operated with two bins.

To help ensure that the site would not be overrun again with refuse, the members of the BRTF offered to regularly monitor the dumpster site. The group kept its promise and a member visited the site each day for more than two years, until February 2010, when the town government took over monitoring duties on weekdays, with the Task Force checking the site on weekends. 

Recycling increases - In 2009, residents deposited in the recycling dumpsters an average of 18.5 tons of recyclables each month. During the same 12-month period, however, the town still sent more than 1,200 tons of household waste to the county landfill. That's equal to one full ton (2,000 pounds) of waste for every Boonsboro household being buried in the landfill during the year.

The recycling tonnage at the two dumpsters increased more than 40 percent in 2010, as the additional capacity encouraged more residents to use the facility on a regular basis. Unfortunately, the household waste going into the landfill did not decrease. Again, 1,200 tons of waste was transported by a private contractor to the county's landfill west of Hagerstown. In 2010, the county charged a $50 tipping fee for each ton deposited in the landfill by a municipality. (The fee was increased to $52 in 2011.)

Curbside needed - The Task Force's second goal from the start has been to bring curbside recycling to the residents of Boonsboro. An estimated 3,300 people reside in Boonsboro, Washington County's second largest municipality, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Of the nine municipalities in the county, five  -- Hagerstown, Williamsport, Smithsburg, Clear Spring and Keedysville -- have once-a-week collection of trash and recyclables. Both Smithburg and Clear Spring added curbside pickup in July 2011, while Keedysville started the service in late January 2012. (Washington County provides no curbside recycling services anywhere in the county; households outside of the municipalities are serviced by private haulers only.)

Washington County provides drop-off recycling services at the 40-West Landfill, at transfer stations in Hancock, in Greensburg and in South County at two locations, one on Kaetzel Road and the other on Dargan School Road. In addition, the county finances the dumpster program at various locations throughout the county, including the site in Boonsboro.

The current and former Board of County Commissioners, have participated in several discussions regarding county-wide curbside recycling programs, but no action has been taken.

Survey - In late 2007, a door-to-door survey (Click here to view the survey) was conducted by Task Force members to determine who and how residents were recycling at the time and how many would be interested in the town’s starting a curbside recycling program. Of the nearly 500 households surveyed, more than 86 percent were in favor of adding curbside services. The town, however, has not as yet initiated a curbside program. The town's sanitation contract, however, will go out for bids this spring and hopes are high that curbside recycling will be added to the solid waste pickup schedule.

Other community programs

While the BRTF continues to push for more recycling services in the town and beyond, members have become involved in other educational and outreach programs to improve the community:

Green Fest - Planning began in early 2009 for the first annual Boonsboro Green Fest. The second Saturday in May - the day before Mother's Day - was selected and members began to work on attracting exhibitors, sponsors and food vendors, and on promoting the event throughout the region. The event was so successful, with 84 vendors and thousands of attendees, that the committee immediately vowed to make it an annual affair. The fourth annual Green Fest is set for May 12, 2012.

Education - Environmental Clubs were started at both Boonsboro High School (March 2008) and Middle School (September 2008). The Middle School club has grown to more than 30 members and has continued to be active in a variety of projects.

MAKE YOUR OWN - Janeen Solberg (right), immediate past chairperson of the Recycling Task Force, demonstrates to a church group in Boonsboro how to mix eco-friendly household cleaners. She is assisted by Task Force members Kathy Vesely (left) and Jenny Sarnecki. All three are founding members of the Task Force.

Green Cleaning - A demonstration on how to make eco-friendly cleaning products has been presented by BRTF Janeen Solberg to groups throughout the community. If your organization would like to learn how to help the environment and save money at the same time, send an email to the attention of Janeen. 

Information - A recycling how-to information sheet (Click here to view the how-to sheet) was produced by the BRTF and distributed throughout the community and mailed with the residents’ town utility bills in 2008. A refrigerator magnet detailing what and where to recycle was also distributed to town residents.The Task Force has also made available a flyer listing a wide variety of recyclables being collected by various agencies, groups and individuals throughout the county. Many items are collected each year at the Green Fest's drive-thru, drop-off site.

Special events recycling - BRTF members collected recyclables during all of the major events held during 2008-2011 in the town's Shafer Park. Initially, the recycling containers were borrowed from a neighboring municipality for each event. The Task Force, however, felt that the town should have its own containers so they would be more accessible. The Mayor & Council agreed and the 15 new containers were debuted at the first annual Green Fest. (More containers and other equipment and supplies are being purchased by the Green Fest Committee for the town during 2012.)

The special event containers have been used to collect recyclable bottles and cans during all of the major events at the park, at the South Mountain Little League baseball fields on Monroe Road throughout the baseball season and at other special events. The Town buys the special collection bags and the Task Force members set up, monitor and collect the recyclables to be placed in the recycling dumpsters at the Park-n-Ride, next to Thompson Gas. Hundreds of extra-large, see-through bags have been filled with recyclables that otherwise would have ended up in the county landfill.

TREASURES IN 'THEM THAR' LOCKERS - Task Force members Rosemary James (left) and Kathy Vesely sort the contents of the Boonsboro High School lockers during one of the locker clean-outs Kathy initiated at the high school. Hundreds of notebooks, paper, pencils, books and a myriad of other reusable materials have been saved from being dumped in the county landfill. The recovered supplies are then made available to students at no cost. The founder of the school's Environmental Club, Kathy is also the chair of the Washington County Solid Waste Advisory Committee, which reports to the County Commissioners. A group of students, earning their Student Service Learning (SSL) hours, collects recyclables each week from the classrooms. Without this program, there would be no organized recycling program in the high school. The Board of Education has provided recycling bins at each school in the county, but it takes a committed person, such as Kathy, to carry out a successful program.

Report - To let the community know about its goals and accomplishments, the BRTF produced a report (Click here to view the report) of its first year’s activities and made a presentation to the Boonsboro Mayor & Council in September 2008.

Since the Task Force's inception, two members have won seats on the Boonsboro Town Council. As a result, the Mayor and Council receive regular updates regarding the activities of both committees. 

LANDFILL TOUR - The Task Force sponsored an eye-opening tour of the Washington County 40 West Landfill in the fall of 2008. Other tours are being planned. County Recycling Coordinator Harvey Hoch (left) led the tour. Harvey retired from his "day job" in early 2010, but he has remained an active member of both  the BRTF and the Green Fest Committee.

Members reach out to help community - Members of the Task Force are very busy with families, work, and other civic, school and religious activities. And the enthusiasm to treat Mother Earth kindly carries over into the community. One of many examples occurred when member Brigitte Schmidt initiated a soccer equipment and clothing swap (see photo below) during the start of the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) season in September 2009. More than 30 players were outfitted with gently used cleats and 20 players received soccer balls, while several others received shinguards, socks and shorts. A sports equipment swap was added to the Green Fest in 2011.

SOCCER SWAP - The BRTF and the local youth soccer organization teamed up to sponsor a soccer equipment and clothing swap during two Saturdays in September 2009. Showing off some of the gently used items are (from left) Brigitte Schmidt, a BRTF founding member and originator of the swap, Keith Juedemann, regional commissioner for AYSO, and Paul Kadin, assistant regional commissioner.

Expand - An important goal of the Task Force is to continue expanding its membership so current programs can be enhanced and new earth-friendly programs and projects can be initiated.

Make a positive difference in our community

Now you've seen what we've been up to. If these sorts of activities sound interesting, we would love to have you join the Task Force. Email us and help make our community a better place for everyone.

Our regular meetings are held on the third Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. at the Community Center in Boonsboro's Shafer Park and are open to the public. Please join us.

BRTF meeting topics varied - The Task Force has played host to a wide variety of resource people discussing many topics of interest to the community. Topics have included recycling, solar energy systems, safe food preparation for large gatherings, advantages of purchasing produce from a certified organic farm and how to reduce your carbon footprint. In addition, members and guests have viewed the movie "Trashed" (http://trashedmovie.com/trailer.html) during a special movie night.

CHOOSE CLEAN, GREEN POWER - Members and guests of the Boonsboro Recycling Task Force, including Chair Janeen Solberg (right), heard an informative presentation in 2010 about how to use wind-generated electricity in their homes. Amanda Duzak (left) of Clean Currents explained why and how residents can choose green power over electricity generated by coal and nuclear plants. BRTF members Sean Haardt (center) and his wife Leslie (not pictured) were the first Boonsboro family to make the switch to Clean Currents, a clean energy company based in Rockville, Md. "Signing up was easy," says Sean. Go to www.cleancurrents.com for more information. Be sure to type in "Boonsboro" when asked how you heard about the program when filling out the application to switch to Clean Currents. There is no cost to switch to wind power. Maryland residents have had the opportunity to switch power providers since legislation was approved by the General Assembly a decade ago.