ADDITIONS — Wintersville Mayor Mike Petrella and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Deputy Brad Polaski, litter control officer, inspect the recycling bins placed near the Wintersville Municipal Building recently by the JB Green Team. With the cooperation of village officials, the bins have found a temporary new home at the site but are among many placed throughout the county for the deposit of paper, cardboard, glass bottles, plastic containers and metal cans. -- Warren Scott

WINTERSVILLE — From discarded cardboard boxes to old tires, the JB Green Team wants to prevent many things from being tossed into the trash when they could be put to new use.

The regional recycling program’s efforts recently received a boost with the cooperation of Wintersville officials who have allowed several bins to be placed in the parking lot of the village’s Municipal Building on Grove Street.

Specific bins are designated for paper and cardboard, glass bottles, plastic containers and metal cans.

Anita Petrella, the program’s executive director, said when the bins’ former Wintersville location became unavailable, Wintersville Council allowed them to be placed there.

But Mayor Mike Petrella, who also is Anita’s son, said the bins will have to be moved this summer because the lot will be repaved and there are concerns about the large trucks used to haul the bins damaging the fresh asphalt.

Anita said until then, she is seeking a permanent home for them in the village, which is among many areas of the county that have embraced the recycling program.

Formed in 1989, the program is overseen by the Jefferson-Belmont Regional Solid Waste Authority, a regional board also known as the JB Green Team.

Anita Petrella said the bins are among many located throughout both counties and are just a part of the program.

Another aspect are tire collections that will be held at the following sites: at the Wells Township slag yard across from the Brilliant American Legion, April 7; the Mount Pleasant Township slag yard at the intersection of state Route 150 and county Road 7 in Dillonvale, April 14; the Salem Township Garage in Richmond, April 21; the Cross Creek Township garage in Wintersville, April 28; the Springfield Township Complex in Bergholz, May 5; the Saline Township Complex in Hammondsville, May 12; the Knox Township Garage on township Road 247, May 19; the Island Creek Township Garage on state Route 213, June 2; the Smithfield Township collection at the intersection of County Road 10 and state Route 152, June 9; the Wayne Township Garage on county Road 26 in Bloomingdale, June 16; the Steubenville Township Garage in Mingo Junction, June 23; and the Caruso lot on Third Street in Tiltonsville, June 30.

Only standard car and light truck tires will be accepted.

The JB Green Team also will hold a hazardous household waste collection in June outside the Fort Steuben Mall, with details to be announced.

She said many local community cleanups, in which residents place bulky refuse out with their regular garbage or take it to a designated site, also are supported by grants secured by the JB Green Team.

The JB Green Team also awards its own grants of $1,000 or $5,000 to local governments, schools and nonprofit organizations for purchases related to recycling, such as playground equipment or picnic tables made from repurposed material.

Petrella said a large portion of the proceeds from recyclable paper collected at local schools goes to them.

She added staff at the JB Green Team are available to speak toi schools and other groups about recycling.

Petrella said the success of any recycling program depends on people being conscientious about what they leave in the bins.

Things that may be left in the bins include soft- and hardcover books, without any plastic overwrap; newspapers, magazines and glossy ad inserts; cardboard boxes (without styrofoam inserts), egg cartons and paper towel or toilet paper tubes; mail, envelopes and other paper as well as metal cans and plastic containers, the latter marked on the bottom with a 1 or 2.

Everyone is asked to rinse containers that contained food first and not leave pizza boxes soiled by grease to prevent vermin from being attracted to the bins.

Shredded paper is welcome, but individuals are asked to put it in cardboard boxes or paper bags if possible.

Other items also should be dumped in paper bags or boxes or loose because plastic bags often get stuck in the machinery used to sort them, said Petrella.

She said the dumping of nonrecyclable trash is a big problem, because companies that accept recyclable material often charge a fee, and the JB Green Team must pay to have large items left at the bins dumped at local landfills.

“And if the bins are full, please come back later,” said Petrella, who added leaving material outside them is considered littering.

As a litter control officer for the county, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Deputy Brad Polaski visits the various recycling bins periodically to check for illegal dumping and has been able to file charges against several individuals responsible.

Soon after the bins arrived at the Wintersville Municipal Building, several residents stopped by to leave recyclables.

Among them was Terry Retzer, who was among local residents happy to see them at a local site again.

Retzer said he started recycling a few years ago and keeps large garbage bags in two boxes at home, emptying them into the bins about every other week.

He said it’s among many things that can be done to be more environmentally conscious.

In addition to Wintersville, JB Green Team bins can be found at several sites in Steubenville as well as in Adena, Amsterdam, Bergholz, Bloomingdale, Brush Creek, Dillonvale, Stratton, Island Creek, Mingo Junction, Mount Pleasant, Richmond, Saline Township, Smithfield, Tiltonsville, Toronto, Wells Township and Yorkville.

For specific sites, see the Jefferson County – Drop Off Location link at https://www.jbgreenteam.org/recycling.

(Scott can be contacted at wscott@heraldstaronline.com.)