Shredding service now offered at recycling center

The Bella Vista Recycling Center is starting a new service. Volunteers will now be on hand to help shred personal documents on Wednesday and Saturday from 8 a.m. until noon.

Volunteer Ken Nelson explained that there’s no place in Bella Vista that shreds on a regular basis, although there are occasional shredding events. Now Bella Vista residents have two choices at the center. They can drop off items at any time and leave instructions to shred them, or they can bring items on Wednesday and Saturday and watch the items shredded.

Most of the shredded paper will be white office paper, Nelson predicted. The center will benefit because white office paper is valuable in recycling markets.

“It’s more valuable than the cardboard we bring in,” Nelson said.

All proceeds from the recycling center are donated to nonprofit organizations in the community, but recently the center has had a problem with people dropping off items that can’t be recycled.

“We’re getting way too much trash,” he said, pointing out that money spent on trash pick up is money that isn’t going to a community nonprofit. One problem area is plastic food containers. The plastic box in which fruit is packaged may appear to be the same as a plastic water bottle, but it’s not, he said. The food container cannot be recycled and must be fished out of the bottle bin and thrown in the trash.

A complete list of what the center accepts can be found on its website, Bella VistaRecycleCenter.com. There are also signs and posters at the center, as well as volunteers who can answer questions.