In March, IPI started a new venture with Great River Regional Waste Authority (GRRWA) providing a workforce of incarcerated individuals from our Fort Madison plant in their recycling operation. The work crew consists of approximately eight incarcerated individuals from the Iowa State Penitentiary and one staff that work at the GRRWA Monday through Friday. At this location, recyclables are sorted, baled and shipped to numerous markets throughout the United States.
This is a great opportunity for IPI’s incarcerated individuals to not only learn new skills but also to assist GRRWA in a program that helps the communities’ environment.
One of the main reasons for recycling is to reduce the amount of garbage sent to the landfills; recycling diverts approximately 32% of waste away from the landfills. GRRWA accepts the following items for recycling:
- Clean cardboard
- Newsprint
- Magazines
- Plastics #1 through #7
- Heavy ridged plastic (toys, buckets, etc.)
- Shredded office paper (no carbon paper)
- Tin cans
- Aluminum cans
- All colors of glass containers (jars, bottles, etc.)