With the New Year, the West Columbia Public Works and Sanitation departments increased recycling.

An extra recycle container pick-up day was added in the 1st week of the year to sanitation routes to help clear the extra volume from Christmas packaging.

The city also collected discarded Christmas trees.

In the past those trees were passed on to the SC Department of Natural Resources to be submerged in local lakes for fish habitat.

This year the recycled trees will have a more local impact.

“We took the trees to the landfill for grinding,” said Jamie Hook, the City of West Columbia’s Public Works Director.

The mulch will enhance the efforts of the West Columbia Beautification Foundation.

“We’ll distribute the mulch in the city’s parks and use it at the street-scaping projects that the West Columbia Beautification Foundation oversees,” he said.

Hook was named Partner-of-the-Year for Keep the Midlands Beautiful last November.

“We want to reduce the amount of contaminants in recycling,” said Hook.

He said recycling should include flattened cardboard, discarded mail, including newspapers and magazines, and aluminum and steel cans, but cans should not be crushed.

Other items ideal for recycling include glass, milk and orange juice cartons, plastic containers and empty water bottles, without the tops.

Styrofoam and plastic grocery bags should not be placed in the city’s recycle bins. Hook said you can return plastic bags to the grocery store for recycling.

The Sonoco company’s Materials Recovery Facility in Columbia takes the city’s recyclables.

Hook said the city’s recycling program has been successful.

About 3 years ago West Columbia incorporated 95-gallon recycle bins. Hook said residential recycling has increased from about 45 tons to 75 tons a month.

Amy Merle, a Lexington 2 art teacher, oversees the recycling effort at Northside Middle School in West Columbia.

“We all go out on a weekly basis,” said Merle, “and transfer the recyclable items we’ve collected so it can be taken to the recycling center.”