Baldwin County residents now have a third option for disposing of hard-to-recycle items after the Baldwin County Solid Waste Disposal Authority opened a new Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials, known as a CHaRM facility, in Orange Beach.
The new site is the largest of the authority’s three CHaRM locations in the county, joining existing facilities in Fairhope and Summerdale. The centers are designed to accept materials that typically cannot go into a household’s curbside recycling bin, including glass, electronics, batteries, paint and household hazardous waste.
The authority opened its first CHaRM location last August, and since then has served nearly 20,000 customers and collected more than 26,000 hard-to-recycle items, according to officials.
SWDA CEO Terri Graham said the centers are intended to make it easier for residents to responsibly dispose of items that could otherwise end up in landfills or, worse, dumped illegally. She said staff at each facility are available to help residents figure out how to handle items they aren’t sure what to do with.
“If you come to a CHaRM, our workers are going to help you figure out what to do with it,” Graham said. “And that’s the biggest thing. Don’t just throw it out, let us help you.”
The Orange Beach facility was funded through Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, or GOMESA, funds, which direct a share of federal offshore energy revenue toward coastal restoration, infrastructure and conservation projects in Gulf Coast states. Baldwin County has used GOMESA funding for a range of public projects in recent years, from boat launches to shoreline improvements.
The authority isn’t finished expanding the program. Officials say three more CHaRM centers are planned throughout Baldwin County, with one already under construction in Bay Minette.
Household hazardous waste — items such as paint, batteries, pesticides, cleaning chemicals and electronics — poses particular disposal challenges because it cannot legally or safely be placed in standard landfills or curbside bins. Programs like the CHaRM centers are increasingly common across the country as counties look for ways to reduce the volume of hazardous material that ends up improperly discarded.
Residents can find a complete list of accepted materials, hours of operation and any applicable fees at baldwinrecycles.org or by calling 251-972-6878.