Orange Coast College set to reopen its Recycling Center next week

The recycling center at Orange Coast College will be reopening with modifications on Tuesday, May 4, the college announced on Friday.

After being closed for more than a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the recycling center will have new hours of operation and new health and safety protocols in place.

“We are thrilled to be able to bring back this vital recycling resource for our local community members,” Orange Coast College President Angelica Suarez said in a statement. “OCC is committed to safely reopening our facilities in accordance with local, state and federal health guidelines. We know the demand to reopen the Recycling Center is high, and we look forward to provide this service to our community once again.”

The recycling center will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. The operating hours are set at 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, and the hours for Saturday are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The facility will be closed each week on Sunday and Monday.

Face coverings and social distancing will be required of all on site. There will also be hand sanitizer made available to customers and cleaning of high-touch surfaces.

A requirement introduced to mitigate the spread of the virus is that all material must be sorted prior to being handed over to the recycling center. That includes removing bottle caps from bottles.

The recycling center has been closed since March of 2020, but prior to the shutdown, the college reported that the facility processed an estimated 60,000 aluminum cans daily, 20 tons of glass bottles weekly, and 1,000 tons of paper per year.

Previously recognized with a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certificate, the recycling center is funded by the Associated Students of the college.

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