Recycling Association of the Virgin Islands (RAVI) volunteers and others crushed cans, cleaned and hauled off trash at the Recycle Center in Anna’s Hope Saturday, part of a big effort to reopen the center this fall.
“Our goal is to open in mid November,” said Colleen Sullivan, RAVI president. “We are making a huge push. But we still have a lot of hurdles and formalities to go through.” She said they are in formal discussions with a potential recycling operator.
The center has been closed for about two years because the last owner couldn’t afford to keep it running.
The project has been going on since December 2009 when RAVI, partnering with the Boys and Girls Club, got a $39,000 grant from the Waste Management Authority to refurbish the center.
A major cleanup was done in January in the hopes of opening in February but there were a few snags. At that time the site looked ready but people continued to drop off cans and some trash, creating a big mess again.
Mario Leonard, director of Environmental Programs at WMA, said the center had some hiccups. The biggest came from the Department of Public Works construction on Queen Mary Highway where a ditch-like swale is still not completed though other road construction in that area was finished a few weeks ago.
“The people are so enthusiastic and excited, they love what they are doing,” Leonard said. “This is all really about partnership with the community.”
Sullivan said fence posts were put in Saturday, and the next step is putting up the fence. RAVI wants to clean up and keep the area clean so it doesn’t become a hazardous site in a hurricane.
Volunteers were also weed-whacking, raking up garbage, stacking tires and filling two 30-yard bins with cans and carting refuse off to Peter’s Rest trash bin site.
More than 15 people were sweating and getting filthy cleaning up the site from 8 a.m. until after noon.
A little yellow and black backhoe was running over and crushing the cans. Reliable Rental lent the Skid Steer and backhoe operator, and Paradise Waste donated the use of the bins.
“It is easy to do something like this when you are passionate about the cause and recycling,” said Heather Moore, RAVI leadership team member. She said everybody can do their part just by crushing cans to save space and washing out cans to keep bugs away from the site. Moore said they are starting with educating the kids. “It is a grassroots cause and the rest of the population needs to get involved.”
Sullivan said they can use all sorts of help from the public for the grand opening. Email RAVI for more details.
