By Wendy Burton
Times Editor
—
Visions of compost piles and mountains of glass dance in Jamie Clinton’s head.
He and co-owner Berry Bargis of Three Forks Roll-Off and Recycling, both hometown men, dream of turning Fort Gibson into a town where everyone recycles and even restaurants turn leftovers into fertilizer.
In the meantime, the men have started a convenient drop-off center for just about everything but common household trash.
“You can give it to us knowing that we are going green,” Clinton said. “We’ll make sure the recyclables get recycled and create new products.”
Currently, Three Forks Roll-Off has placed two large commercial containers at 409 Ozark St., near the dog pound and the town brush site.
Customers will be able to back up their truck or trailer and sort their recyclables into available polycarts as they unload.
The old Fort Gibson landfill has been closed for more years than Clinton or Bargis can remember, they said.
Residents have been trekking 16 miles one way to use Muskogee’s landfill and now won’t have to.
The company cannot accept municipal waste (household trash) but can take everything from car batteries to construction materials.
“We’re not accepting everyday garbage because the town already does that,” Clinton said. “The last thing we want to do is create a nuisance with smelly garbage.”
In the near future, they plan to begin accepting used motor oil as well.
Fees will be based on volume and make-up of the material brought to the center.
The more recyclables in the materials, the less fee there is for the customer.
They plan to be open on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays for certain, but will also publish an announcement out on exact hours and days in the near future, Bargis said.
Someday Clinton hopes to see everyone in Fort Gibson and the surrounding areas recycling.
“Almost 99 percent of plastic you see is a petroleum based product,” he said, holding up a plastic salt shaker. “It can be turned back into a usable product.”
Clinton said some big cities like Las Vegas can take over 14,000 tons of trash a day into their landfills.
If customers would only sort out their recyclables first, those kind of numbers would go down considerably, he said.
He would like to open a materials recovery facility, but that plan depends on the volume they move through the current convenience center.
“It would be awesome to have a recycling facility in our hometown and know that we made a difference here,” Clinton said.
For more information on Three Forks Roll-Off and Recycling services, including construction site clean-up, call Clinton at 616-2530.
Reach Wendy Burton at 684-2926 or wburton@ muskogeephoenix.com.
Donations
Currently accepting:
Glass
Plastic
Cardboard
Car batteries
Metal
Cans of paint
Wood
Demolition materials
Not accepting at this time:
Appliances unless all freon has been evacuated.
Tires
Household garbage
