It's getting a little easier to be "Green" in West Yellowstone, Montana!
Great Places Deserve Great Coffee and Great places like West Yellowstone need to be protected, improved and made more sustainable for those who live in this tiny town on the border of Yellowstone National Park and those who visit~
Since last February, Green-Up West Yellowstone has been working to increase recycling opportunities, reduce the volume of recyclable materials entering the waste stream and promote sustainable business practices in the Town of West Yellowstone. Green-Up West Yellowstone is a loosely organized group of representatives from local businesses, the Town government and the community at large. The group meets regularly at Morning Glory Coffee and Tea to develop goals and implement strategies related to environmentally friendly practices.
Mayor Pierre Martineau says, "As the most heavily utilized entrance to the world's first national park, the Town of West Yellowstone should strive to be as green as possible. Green-Up West Yellowstone was created by Jack Clarkson several years ago and finally, after lots of work, Jack's ideas are gaining traction."
Green-Up West Yellowstone's most visible success story is the Two Season Recycling Center which re-opened for business on June 8. The Center, located at 105 Hayden Street, had been closed to public recycling drop-offs for over a year. Owner Gus Tureman closed the Center when he got tired of dealing with the non-recyclable garbage that was illegally dumped at the facility. Green-Up participants Mayor Martineau and Public Services Superintendent Bill Fogarty worked with Gus to develop a win-win solution for the residents and visitors to Town, Two Seasons Recycling and the Town of West Yellowstone. Basically, the Town installed recycling bins on several street corners in the primary business area and, by doing so, has reduced the amount of recyclable material that enters the waste stream. Instead, recyclable material collected in the street-side bins is transferred to Two Seasons Recycling Center and garbage that has been dumped at the Center is picked up by the Town and hauled to the Transfer Station. For this agreement to work for the parties on a long-term basis, visitors and residents alike must understand that dumping garbage at Two Seasons Recycling Center is prohibited.
In addition to working on ways to increase recycling opportunities, Green-Up West Yellowstone has investigated options for recycling glass and for promoting sustainable business practices. At this point, no workable glass recycling solution has been found because of the high costs associated with transporting glass but discussions on the topic continue. The owner of Morning Glory Coffee and Tea, Chris Burke, has been very helpful at providing ideas and information about sustainable business practices. He regularly updates the Green-Up West Yellowstone Facebook page with information and ideas about making a business more sustainable. In the future, Green-Up West Yellowstone will consider ways to involve more local businesses in going green.
The next Green-Up West Yellowstone meeting is scheduled to take place at 3 p.m., Wednesday, June 23, at Morning Glory Coffee and Tea. Everyone is welcome to attend. For more information, contact Town Operations Manager Jamie Greene at 646-7795.
Article reposted from www.westyellowstonenews.com Thank you!
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