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Waves of recycling hitting island's beaches

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Don't just toss your empty soda cans or newspapers when you leave the beach today: The era of recycling finally has come to Hilton Head Island beaches.

A recycling project began last month at some of the island's busiest beach spots, the first step in what could become a townwide effort to increase recycling in all public areas, homes and businesses.

The blue recycling bins are at several locations on Coligny Beach, with others at Chaplin Community Park and Islanders Beach Park. The bins can be used for all recyclable items, such as glass, plastic, paper and aluminum.

After the summer pilot program ends, the town will evaluate the results to determine if recycling should be expanded to all parks, facilities manager Tripp Ritchie said.

The bins are the first appearance of public recycling on Hilton Head, but probably won't be the last. After years of leaving recycling in the hands of private citizens or building owners, the Town Council is making a major push this year to embrace more green initiatives, including consideration of a mandatory, townwide recycling program.

That push comes after the town heard feedback from visitors who were shocked that an island priding itself on eco-friendly development lacked recycling initiatives. The council even heard of one visitor who said she packed her bottles and cans in her suitcase to take home to Texas so they would be recycled.

As the town considered its options over the past few months, it became clear the first step was to introduce recycling in public areas, said Councilman John Safay, who is overseeing recycling research.

"We felt that it was important that the town ... practice what it preaches," he said. "We are going to want to implement a recycling program that will be for our residents and businesses to participate in, but we also need to show that the town is doing its part on the town-owned properties."

Waste Management is collecting and sorting the recycling, Ritchie said. The town is monitoring the bins to make sure trash doesn't get mixed with recycling. So far the project has been mostly successful, he said, though a check of the bins at Coligny on Tuesday morning found juice containers, wrappers and other trash mixed in.

Still, some visitors are so used to recycling they won't have a problem, Ritchie said.

"I think there's a knowledge base out there that people who recycle know what can be recycled," he said.

Meanwhile, a consultant's report on options for a townwide recycling initiative for homes and businesses is expected early next month, Safay said. The issue is complicated because 70 percent of residents live behind private gates, and several different waste haulers serve the island, he said. But the report will help the town understand which direction to go, he said.

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