On March 31th of this year, Southern Recycling ended the long-standing service of community curbside recycling pickup. Sighting a negative value for the materials collected coupled with the added costs and difficulty to dispose of those materials having reached unsustainable levels. This decision has left many people wondering what to do with their recycling. Especially given that WKU’s on-campus recycling drop-off location was also closed down at the same time curbside pickup ended.
But fear not, there is a temporary solution. Southern Recycling spokesperson, Keith McKelvey, says that the company “didn’t want to cut people off ‘cold-turkey’”. So a drop-off location at 63 North Graham St. has stayed open and will be available to the public through the end of July. Until then, drop-offs of aluminum, plastic, glass, cardboard, and paper can be made Mon-Fri, 8am-4:30pm until July 31st. There are signs posted to help residents navigate the area starting on Louisville Rd., continuing on Plum Springs Loop, and pointing the way down North Graham Street until you reach the entrance of the Southern Recycling Facility.
In addition to providing a drop-off location for those who wish to continue recycling, the North Graham location is the newest Southern Recycling facility in Bowling Green, having opened only a year or so ago. And the company is ever expanding. Getting the bulk of the metal they recycle from the expanding industrial complexes in Warren County, there is a constant influx of materials to be processed. Especially large pieces of metal and plastic. Built near an active set of tracks, rail access to this facility will soon help ease the growing pains and allow this location much greater ability to ship and receive in bulk. This new rail access will also help cut the cost of production and increase productivity.
The company also has seen some changes at a managerial level in the past few months. In October of 2019, Rob Rutherford took seat as President after working with Southern Recycling at the Nashville location for over 4 years. Bringing 20+ years of valuable experience with him, this WKU alum has big ideas and promises more big things to come for for company in the coming months.
