WEST MILFORD The figures are in. The township's Beautification Day was a big score. Eleven hundred blue bags of recyclables were filled by volunteers who had just one purpose - making the township, well, beautiful. The all-volunteer crew also collected five tons of trash from throughout the township.
According to the Recycling Committee, four tons of bottles and cans were collected to be recycled. That's up from last year's total, which filled two Dumpsters.
This year, the amount of metal collected was down from last year. That may have to do with the high premium paid for scrap metal. This year, 6,000 pounds of metal were collected compared to about 14 tons last year.
Recycling Coordinator David Stires instituted recycling as part of the Beautification Day two years ago. Before that, all that was picked up was tossed in the trash. Now, more than half of what's picked up is recycled, good for the environment and good for the township since it receives cold hard cash for its recyclables. Also for the past two years, everyone participating in Beautification Day is a volunteer. No township employees are paid for the day. It's truly a day of service to the township.