听The Solid Waste Disposal Authority (SWDA) of Baldwin County opened Alabama鈥檚 first Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials (CHaRM) on August 7, offering residents a manned convenience center for items not accepted curbside. More than 50 community members, elected officials and sustainability partners attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony at 20609 Bishop Road.听
鈥淭his facility gives our residents the added infrastructure they need to recycle everyday items that couldn鈥檛 be handled curbside,鈥� said SWDA CEO Terri Graham. 鈥淏y diverting these materials from the Material Recovery Facility we are ensuring safety for our workers as well as protecting our waterways, reducing greenhouse-gas emissions and building a more sustainable future by keeping these resources out of our landfills.鈥�听
Fairhope Mayor Sherry Sullivan added, 鈥淐HaRM is a game changer for our community. Now residents throughout Baldwin County have one convenient location to drop off electronics, batteries, paint and other hard-to-recycle items鈥攈elping keep our county clean and green.鈥�听
The Fairhope CHaRM is open Monday鈥揊riday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 7 a.m. to noon; no appointment is needed. Residents may bring aluminum cans, glass bottles and jars, cardboard, plastics (types 1-7), mixed paper, small household batteries and light bulbs for free. A small handling fee applies to certain items: residential paint and household hazardous waste are $2 per gallon; car batteries are $2 each; propane tanks and fire extinguishers are $4 each; and electronics (TVs, phones, laptops) are $5 per unit. Items not accepted include tires, mattresses, construction debris, furniture, medical or bio-hazardous waste, and white goods.
Since launching in June, SWDA鈥檚 curbside recycling program has enrolled hundreds of Daphne households. Together with the new CHaRM facility, these initiatives are projected to divert thousands of tons of waste from Baldwin County landfills in their first year.听