2023 Montgomery County Recycling Achievement Recognition

Multi-Family Recycling Achievement Awards

• Multi-Family Outstanding Efforts in Waste Reduction and Recycling
• Multi-Family Property Green Team Committee of the Year

Non-Residential Waste Reduction and Recycling Achievement Awards

• Business - Outstanding Efforts in Waste Reduction and Recycling
• Business - Waste Reduction and Recycling Champion Awards
• Commercial Recycling Partnerships

Multi-Family Waste Reduction and Recycling Awards

Outstanding Efforts in Waste Reduction and Recycling

Awarded to multi-family properties that have undertaken exemplary efforts to develop, expand, or enhance their waste reduction and recycling programs. For this and all of the following award categories, information obtained is based upon interactions with DEP/Waste Reduction and Recycling staff.

Asbury Methodist Village

Asbury Methodist Village exhibits excellent communication when it comes to recycling and educating residents about the do's and don'ts of recycling so that residents recycle right. Multiple resident councils within Asbury Methodist Village coordinate and host waste reduction and recycling presentations to increase resident awareness of recycling and how to recycle right at Asbury Methodist Village. In addition, Asbury has implemented a voluntary food scraps recycling program to minimize the amount of waste disposed in their waste stream. In 2022, Asbury Methodist Village recycled 253,833 pounds of food scraps!

Blair House

Blair House has multiple green initiatives to increase recycling and reduce waste while aiming for Zero Waste. Among these initiatives are recycling of carpet, electronics, clothing and food scraps. In 2022, Blair House recycled over 20,000 pounds of voluntary materials! In 2022, Blair House achieved a recycling rate of 73.5 percent.

Claridge House

At Claridge House, educational materials on recycling right are distributed directly to residents and posted throughout the community to increase awareness of the property’s on-site recycling program. For example, the recycling collection area in the garage level of the building has a separate recycling container for voluntary items such as fluorescent light bulbs, ink and toner cartridges, and batteries, in addition to recycling containers for the required recyclable materials. In 2022, residents of Claridge House recycled almost 90 pounds of fluorescent light bulbs, batteries, and ink cartridges. Residents are also encouraged to donated unwanted items to further reduce the amount of waste generated on-site.

Churchill Senior Living

Churchill Senior Living is committed to recycling and offers its residents plenty of opportunities to recycle with a great capacity for collection services and accessibility at their collection sites. This property continuously recycles more than 50 percent of their waste year after year. In 2022, Churchill Senior Living continued this level of excellence by recycling almost 61 percent of their waste stream. The staff at Churchill Senior Living ensure that all recycling containers and trash chutes are well labeled and accompanied with posters resulting in recyclable materials that are contamination-free! 

The Colonnade at Kentlands

The staff at Colonnade at Kentlands ensures that all recycling containers are clean and well labeled, resulting in clean recyclable materials with no contamination. As part of the property’s continued recycling education for residents, management routinely provides updated recycling container labels, brochures, flyers, and posters to keep everyone informed about the property’s recycling program. Providing updated information and ensuring that residents have in-unit recycling bins increases their efforts to recycle more and recycle right! In 2022, the Colonnade at Kentlands recycled just over 78% of their waste stream. 

Georgetown Village Condominium

The Board of Directors and property manager at Georgetown Village Condominium have demonstrated that it is possible to have a successful recycling program for a large multi-family community. In each of its 19 buildings, the property has clean and organized recycling collection areas with containers for residents to recycle plastic bags and batteries, in addition to the required recyclable materials. Informational notices about recycling are posted on bulletin boards that are located above their mailboxes at each building and articles about recycling are included in the community newsletter. As needed, calls and notices are sent directly to residents who can be identified for not putting trash and recyclable material in the proper containers or for not breaking down cardboard boxes.

Grosvenor Park II Condominium

Grosvenor Park II Condominium is on its fourth edition of “Easy Ways to Recycle at Grosvenor Park II Condominium” which is a small guide that is updated and distributed annually that describes the types of materials that can be placed in the property’s on-site recycling containers and local retail locations that accept items such as eyeglasses and cellphones. To increase resident awareness and participation, the community hosts recycling outreach events in the lobby to encourage residents to recycle right. The social programs committee members also place door hangers on the doorknobs of 422 dwelling units before the holiday season to promote and encourage recycling during the busy holiday season. The property also placed recycling collection containers in their parking garage to collect fluorescent light bulbs from residents. In 2022, residents recycled 528 pounds of fluorescent light bulbs Through these efforts, the property’s recycling rate increased from 14.3% in 2020 to 53.5% in 2022!

Mica Condominium at Silver Spring Metro

Mica Condominium understands that recycling participation increases with accessibility and awareness. A sign posted in the building’s elevator includes a QR code that leads residents to an extensive list of organizations that accept a wide variety of materials for repurpose or reuse. The property also hosted a “swap meet” event for Earth Month to give residents the opportunity to trade gently used items with each other. This has led to an increase in waste reduction efforts at the property. In addition to reducing waste, the recycling collection area includes a recycling container for residents to recycle food scraps. Residents have diverted over 7,500 pounds of food scraps from disposal in 2022. 

Victory Crossing

When you walk into a trash room at Victory Crossing, there are recycling flyers translated into Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean, Mandarin, and Amharic which has greatly improved the accessibility of recycling information to its’ residents. During the quarterly resident’s management meeting, a block of time is dedicated to reminding residents how to recycle right. Monthly newsletters are another tool used to increase recycling education for the community along with the periodic notices displayed on the property’s digital information screen located at the entrance of the building.

 

Multi-Family Property - Green Team Committee of the Year

Awarded to a Multi-Family Green Team that made a positive difference in their multi-family communities to keep Montgomery County clean, green, and beautiful. This group has gone above and beyond the efforts of others to maintain the quality of life in their multi-family communities, working diligently to engage others to actively participate in their waste reduction, reuse, and recycling efforts. This team serves as examples for others to emulate. 

The Green Team of Ingleside at King Farm

Residents at Ingleside at King Farm have their own Green Team, which is very active. The Green Team has regular recycling educational meetings to educate residents and staff about reducing waste, recycling more and composting initiatives. In addition, the Green Team designed their own creative visuals for the trash and recycling rooms to effectively educate their neighbors about what can and cannot be recycled.

Non-Residential Waste Reduction and Recycling Awards

Business - Outstanding Efforts in Waste Reduction and Recycling

Awarded to businesses that have undertaken exemplary efforts to develop, expand, or enhance their waste reduction and recycling programs to reduce waste and recycle more, aiming for Zero Waste. 

Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services

The Alcohol Beverage Services Department (ABS) of Montgomery County, Maryland has shown an outstanding commitment to recycling and waste diversion throughout the department’s operations. In 2022, with ABS leadership buy-in and support, the department formed a green team to audit trash and recycling efforts and develop a long- and short-term waste diversion plan. Working closely with staff from the Recycling and Resource Management Division of the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of General Services, ABS green team members replaced broken trash and recycling equipment to reduce on-site litter, set up four additional recycling stations in the warehouse and administrative offices, increased recycling collection frequencies, expanded recycling of electronics and provided multiple recycling education events and a litter clean-up day for staff. As a result, ABS successfully diverted an additional 37.54 tons commingled materials, 2.73 tons of scrap metal and 393 lbs. of electronics in just one year. Furthermore, to reduce waste, ABS reuses boxes, and works closely with suppliers to take-back other materials and products for reuse, such as shipping pallets and whiskey and wine barrels. ABS’s commitment to recycling and reducing waste demonstrates Montgomery County’s efforts to walk the talk, for cleaner land, air and water.

Peter Brokt, The Colourist Salon

According to some sources, it is estimated that the beauty industry generates almost 900 pounds of waste every minute! The Green Circle Salons, founded in 2009, created a certification program to empower salons to offset their emissions and recover up to 95% of their beauty waste. The Colourist Salon, located in Rockville, was the first Green Circle certified salon in Montgomery County and the State of Maryland. Founded by owner Peter Brokt, the salon recycles hard-to-recycle items such as hair clippings, foils, excess hair color, and plastic color tubes. The Colourist Salon is a leader in the beauty industry and the sustainable beauty movement.

Girls on the Run Montgomery County

Girls on the Run Montgomery County implements fun, evidence-based programs that inspire all girls to build their confidence, kindness and decision-making skills. Each year in the spring and fall, Girls on the Run holds their 5K run for all their program participants. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, Ms. Leanne Till, event director for Girls on the Run Montgomery County, sought to make their 5K events Zero-Waste events. While the races were transitioned online during the first year of Covid-19, Ms. Till used that time to brainstorm ideas and worked directly with the organization’s partners who sponsor the event and donate food, beverages and materials. Additionally, Girls on the Run took the time to rethink how they order spirit wear, giveaways, and race materials. The result was a switch to either compostable or recyclable items provided to participants during the race, set-up of recycling and food scraps recycling stations throughout the course, and ordering items such as t-shirts based on enrollment numbers and not simply projections, immensely reducing the amounts of extras. Girls on the Run was able to host the first ever Zero Waste 5K in their history, nationwide in 2022.

Global Communities

At its core, Global Communities is dedicated to sustainability. Through their actions, they strive to ensure a prosperous and equitable environment for struggling communities across the world, including in downtown Silver Spring. Global Communities has redirected a great deal of their waste to recycling. They partner with local organizations to collect and recycle food scraps, plastic film, and electronics, and encourages their employees to recycle as much of these materials as possible. They are dedicated to education and environmentalism and are excited to grow their programs.

The Heights School

Reducing waste in a school can be a challenge, but the faculty and students at the Heights School do an extraordinary job with their waste reduction and recycling efforts. So much that it shows in their recycling rates above 75% year after year. Here are examples of their waste reduction and recycling efforts: students on sports teams clean out team buses and recycle appropriate materials while the theatre department builds sets reusing materials from old sets and uses scrap lumber and hardware as much as possible. Teachers are known to repair damaged textbooks to reduce the need to purchase new textbooks and will mix coffee grounds from the faculty lounge into the soil of the vegetable garden which is maintained by 7th grade students. The school also has an onsite compost bin for yard trim materials from their garden. Keep up the great examples for other schools to follow!  

Nordstrom Rack

Nordstrom’s BeautyCycle is an innovative take-back and recycling program that accepts all brands of beauty packaging materials to be recycled into new products. Regardless of whether the beauty product was purchased at Nordstrom or another retailer, customers can bring their empty makeup, hair care, and skin care containers to their local Nordstrom store and place them in a BeautyCycle box for recycling. Nordstrom sends the materials to their recycling partner where the materials are cleaned and separated into metals, glass and plastics. Those materials are then recycled into new products.

REGENXBIO

As a biotech company, REGENXBIO, located in Rockville, generates a significant amount of waste throughout the research and development process and manufacturing operations. To minimize the amount of waste disposed in the waste stream, medical waste from their research and development process and manufacturing operations are collected and recycled into alternative plastic lumber used for retaining walls, decks, piers, and shipping pallets. In 2022, REGENXBIO diverted over 35,000 pounds of medical lab waste and electronics for recycling.

William F. Bolger Center

The Bolger Center demonstrates their steadfast commitment to protecting the environment and goes above and beyond with their recycling efforts. Surrounded by 43 acres of managed grounds, the management team of this historic hotel and conference center are committed to sustainability and environmental stewardship. In addition to recycling the required recyclable materials, the Bolger Center also recycles mixed batteries, cooking oil, motor oil, plastic film, light bulbs, tires, in addition to food scraps that are now recycled through the Commercial Food Scraps Recycling Partnership Program. Mr. Joel Flores, the Ground Supervisor for the property also organizes annual Earth Day and Arbor Day events to increase awareness of their waste reduction and recycling programs for their staff and visitors.

 

Business - Waste Reduction and Recycling Champion Awards

Awarded to individuals who made a positive difference in their workplace to keep our land, air, and water clean. These individuals go above and beyond the efforts of others to maintain a healthy environment in their workplace working diligently to engage others to actively participate in their waste reduction and recycling efforts. These individuals serve as examples for others to emulate. 

Oscar Caceres, Red Coats, Inc. 

Participation and accuracy by the janitorial service company in any building is crucial to the success of waste reduction and recycling programs. Mr. Oscar Caceres, Regional Manager of Red Coats, Inc. was instrumental in organizing nearly 100% of his janitorial staff to be trained on proper handling and separation of waste and recycling at 15 different properties in Montgomery County. Mr. Caceres ensured the successful training of almost 300 Red Coats’ janitorial and cleaning staff. He coordinated training to be provided in both English and Spanish to reach the largest number of employees and to ensure the highest level of understanding. 

Debra Low, Bethesda Place 

Ms. Debra Low is responsible for the management of mixed-use multi-family and commercial properties at Bethesda Place. Ms. Low is an enthusiastic supporter of recycling and is always looking for new ways to share information about recycling with her commercial tenants and multi-family residents. She ensures everyone she works with are aware of the County’s recycling requirements and promotes programs and services to maximize recycling and increase waste diversion efforts. For example, Ms. Low coordinated a coat drive in which residents donated their gently used coats and winter wear to be repurposed and distributed to residents in need. Additionally, under her management, Bethesda Place recycled approximately 2,850 lbs. of fluorescent and incandescent light bulbs, keeping these items out of the waste stream. Debra strives to help her commercial and multi-family property reduce waste and recycle more!

Karen E. Mendez, Rolling Terrace Elementary School

Ms. Karen Mendez is more than your run-of-the-mill third grade teacher at Rolling Terrace Elementary School. She has experienced her fair share of environmental disasters and has dedicated herself to making positive change. Ms. Mendez strives to offer opportunities for her students to consider how their actions may affect the environment. During her more than twenty years at Rolling Terrace, she organizes annual stream clean-ups and the popular Green Kids Club to draw attention to environmental issues and teach her students about their choices. She shares her dedication to environmentalism with her students through different ways to reduce, reuse and recycle both in school and at home. She organizes recycling demonstrations for her students, encourages and motivates staff, faculty and students to recycle right, and finds ways to reduce single-use items in her classroom. Ms. Mendez is devoted to spreading awareness about protecting the environment among our future leaders.
 

Commercial Recycling Partnerships