MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. -- Labeled with spray paint and carefully sorted by item, large metal bins sit full of brass shell-casings, glass bottles, computer monitors, shredded paper, refrigerators, aluminum and aerosol cans.
The seven Marines working at the recycling center here have collected and sold more than 532 tons of reusable materials this year.
Marines at the recycling center stay busy with different pick-ups each day of the week. Monday, the busiest day, consists of cardboard collections from the commissary, Consolidated Issue Facility, waste management, the dining facility and the Marine Mart.
The cardboard arrives to the center on trailers and gets hand-tossed into machinery which conforms the boxes into one-ton bails.
The facility has a variety of different equipment such as industrialized shredders, capable of shredding a phone book.
Tuesday, known as curbside day, Marines attach trailers with eight different compartments and drive to base housing gathering plastic, glass and aluminum.
Wednesday, the Marines pick up wooden pallets from different commands and retailers aboard the air station.
Thursday, different offices bring their paper bins to the center and the Marines pick bins from commands without access to government vehicles.
Friday, the Marines focus on areas that will accumulate materials over the weekend, such as the commissary and dining facility.
“The center does not receive any fiscal funding,” said Staff Sgt. Ingrid Melvin, the staff non-commissioned officer-in-charge, or SNCOIC. “Our budget relies on the profits made from the recycled materials.”
All the money the center makes goes directly to maintenance of the equipment in the recycling yard.
The majority of the materials collected here get picked up monthly by Jempco Industries.
“We bail and ship the materials to milling companies in Los Angeles, and export the plastics to industries overseas,” said Jesus Carrillo, the general manager of Jempco Industries.
Besides the normal recyclable materials, the center also collects shell-casings from the rifle range and runs them through a machine that dents the casing, preventing anyone from making a homemade weapon, said Melvin.
Except for the SNCOIC and NCOIC, all the workers at the recycling center are part of the fleet assistance program, usually transferring from a supply billet since a recycling billet does not exist.
The Marines enjoy their work at the recycling center and the role they play to assist the station’s upkeep, explained Sgt. Jose Barrera, the non-commissioned officer-in-charge.
“Without the recycling center, good stuff would go in the trash, landfills would fill up faster and the station would just be a mess,” said Sgt. Fielden Coleman, a worker at the recycle center.