Three-in-One: Recycling, Job Training, Education

About the Program

Category: County Resiliency (Best in Category)

Year: 2017

The Mobile County Residential Recycling Drop-Off Center (MCRC) began operation on November 20, 2014 and is available to all 412,992 Mobile County residents. MCRC’s primary purpose is to increase sustainability by reducing the amount of recyclable materials illegally deposited in the environment or lawfully deposited in landfills. MCRC protects groundwater, coastal waters and wetlands from illegal dumping and littering in the nation’s secondary largest delta system. MCRC offers recycling services which were not previously easily accessible to county residents. It is open 8 a.m. – 6:30 p.m., seven days a week. Paper, cardboard, glass, plastics, aluminum, steel and computers are recycled by the center. Since opening, MCRC has received 5.85 million pounds of material from 278,686 cars – more than 300 cars a day. The Mobile County Environmental Services Department conceptualized the center. The Mobile County Commission’s support and commitment are vital to the project’s success. The Commission dedicated $2.5 million of its Coastal Impact Assistance Project grant funds to the project. County staff selected the location, planned the design and functionality of the MCRC, and oversaw the building of the center. The MCRC is operated by agreement between Mobile County and Goodwill Easterseals of the Gulf Coast, Inc. (GESGC), a 501(c)(3). GESGC has expertise in providing all three purposes of the MCRC: recycling, job training and education. GESGC provides job training for workers, many of whom have mental and/or physical disabilities and need job training to enter or reenter the job market. MCRC’s tertiary purpose is teaming with Mobile County Public Schools to provide field trip/educational experiences. More than 900 students have visited the facility. MCRC helps students earn community service hours. More than 8,606 volunteer hours have been donated to the MCRC since it opened.