KCB eNews

Cobb County is committed to environmental stewardship and is now offering a new pilot recycling program as another way to keep our county clean and beautiful. Keep Cobb Beautiful, along with Cobb Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs and Waste Management will promote the “Away from Home” program at county sports facilities. This program for plastic and aluminum beverage containers is part of the state's Recycle 4 Georgia campaign.

These five parks were selected representative of the four districts in Cobb, and because of their large number of participants and visitors.

The recycling containers have been in some parks for a week now and the response has been very positive. Wild Horse Creek Park hosted the first large event with the program in place, a national BMX competition. The park collected two dumpsters full of recyclables in the three-day event. Announcements were made throughout those days reminding people to use the green and yellow recycling bins for their drink containers. KCB staff and volunteers also was there visiting with the participants, handing out Recycle 4 Georgia tattoos and education materials. “The Parks staff at these five venues has been very supportive of the new program. They think it is a great idea and want to see Recycle in the Park succeed as much as KCB does.” Gwen Baldwin, public program coordinator of Keep Cobb Beautiful, said.

We are hopeful, that down the road, recycling at all County parks will be an every day occurrence.

Residents are encouraged to locate and use the yellow and green recycling bins at five parks throughout Cobb: Wild Horse Creek, Lost Mountain Park, Al Bishop Park, Harrison Park and Terrell Mill Park.

Keep Cobb Beautiful looking for Associate Board Members

High School Juniors, Seniors or college undergrads are invited to apply for the KCB Associate Board Member positions with Keep Cobb Beautiful.

It is a great opportunity to explore the benefits of working with non-profit organization to educate, beautify and uplift the environment. This program gives students hands on experience in implementing programming, hosting events and assisting volunteers in creating an impact within Cobb County .

As an Associate Board Member, they will be eligible to sit on KCB's various committees, help organize and run KCB events, and have the opportunity to represent Keep Cobb Beautiful at luncheons, receptions and award ceremonies. Associate Board Members will have moderate authority and assist with outreach to local civic groups and schools. These are just many of the exciting opportunities that the position provides in addition to being an excellent highlight on a resume.

To be eligible for the Associate Board Member program, the student must meet the following criteria:

Be a current Cobb County resident.

Be at least 16 years old at the time of application.

Be a high school junior or senior, college undergraduate or graduate student.

Have an active interest in environmental community service.

Be able to pledge a total of 35 hours for the school year. This could work out to 4 hours a month (ex: attendance of one board meeting and one event per month).

If you or a student you know would like to apply for the program, please complete the attached application form and submit it to our offices by Friday, September 5th,2008. You may submit your completed application in one of two ways:

By fax:
770-528-2504

or

By mail to:
Keep Cobb Beautiful, Inc.

Associate Board Member Program

1897 County Services Parkway

Marietta , GA 30008

All applications will be reviewed, and interviews will be conducted with the most qualified applicants. The top five candidates will be notified and inducted as official Keep Cobb Beautiful Associate Board Members. To apply go to: http://kcb.cobbcountyga.gov/AssociateBoardMember.htm

DID YOU KNOW?

The Home Depot Launches National CFL Bulb Recycling Initiative

Also Implementing In-Store Energy Conservation Program

ATLANTA, June 24, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ --

The Home Depot(R), the world's largest home improvement retailer, today expanded its long-term commitment to the environment and sustainability by launching a national in-store, consumer compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb recycling program at all 1,973 The Home Depot locations. This free service is the first such offering made so widely available by a retailer in the United States and offers customers additional options for making environmentally conscious decisions from purchase to disposal. The Home Depot Canada launched a CFL recycling program in November, 2007.

At each The Home Depot store, customers can simply bring in any expired, unbroken CFL bulbs, and give them to the store associate behind the returns desk. The bulbs will then be managed responsibly by an environmental management company who will coordinate CFL packaging, transportation and recycling to maximize safety and ensure environmental compliance.

For more information on the CFL Recycling Program or Eco Options, please visit www.homedepot.com/ecooptions .