Spending a day at the local landfill might sound like a smelly adventure, but for one group of busy school kids, it was an education in recycling. The second graders, who head up the recycling efforts at their school, first toured the Buncombe County Landfill in Alexander, North Carolina to see what happens to trash. They toured the property to watch garbage collected in piles and learned how landfill gas, a local and renewable energy source, is released from the decomposing solid waste.

Following a picnic lunch at a park along the French Broad River, students headed to Curbside Management to see what happens to recyclables. They watched workers sort through plastic, paper, aluminum and glass and got tips on what items can be recycled and what needs to be thrown away.

It was a long and messy day, but students returned to school better prepared to take on their conservation jobs. They also had a better understanding of the three R’s…Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

Classes stood together on the scale to weigh themselves before entering the facility.

Employees explain how landfill gas is created.

Playtime at the park for lunch by the French Broad River

Watching trash as it goes through the recycling process

And the very end of the tour…long day!