MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. -- The worker bee Marines of the recycling center can be seen buzzing around the hive of MCAS Miramar gathering, condensing and distributing recyclable items used by fellow service members.
Cardboard, paper, glass, wood, aluminum and brass from more than 45 locations aboard MCAS Miramar, Calif., are collected and prepared for distribution each week to various vendors around San Diego through the efforts of those working in the Miramar recycling center.
The billet of a recycling center Marine is not a specific military occupational specialty. It is based on base-wide need and is open through the fleet assistance program to Marines and sailors who are not currently deployable.
“We never have more than about 10 people working at one time to get all of this done each week,” said Sgt. Jonathan B. Nobles, a recycling lot supervisor with Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron and a Livingston, Texas, native. “We separate each day for a different task as a way to manage it.”
The collection portion of the workload is split between Monday through Thursday. Two Marines load a truck with empty bins to replace full ones located around base that are brought back to the recycling center.
Cardboard collection is the primary focus at the beginning of the week. Cardboard must be put through a cardboard bailer to condense it into easily gathered bales vendors retrieve monthly. Those living and working aboard MCAS Miramar produce on average a bale of cardboard every day.
The “barracks route” is covered each Tuesday. This involves emptying out 64-gallon bins located outside the duty hut of each unit’s barracks.
“After these are emptied, we have to go back and power-wash them out,” said Cpl. Jock H. Sears, a recycling center worker with H&HS and a Denver native. “The bins can get disgusting quickly, and we clean them weekly to keep that from happening.”
The rest of the week follows a similar recycling pattern of plastic, paper, glass and brass collection.
Each Wednesday is spent picking up wooden pallets from aviation supply, the MCAS Miramar Commissary, the Marine Corps Exchange and any unit that may have any pallets ready for disposal. The final collection route day, Thursday, is spent collecting paper. This includes more than 40 stops and must be started no later than 7 a.m. to gather everything, explained Nobles.
Friday is used to catch up on any work not finished throughout the week and to get an early start on the following week’s cardboard collection.
The Marines who work at the recycling center serve the Marine Corps by working Monday through Friday to reduce the waste production of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar by preparing recyclable goods for distribution and reuse.