OAKLAND, Iowa (KMTV) — To save items from the landfill, the Swap Shop at the Pottawattamie County Rural Recycling Center encourages the community to bring in donations and take what they need free of charge.
"There was a lot of people that were coming in with just — I mean, too good to go into the compactor," said Matt Wyant, Pottawattamie County Director of Planning and Development.
With the goal of local participation in mind, the recycling center accepts a number of items for free and allows people to take them for free as an incentive to recycle.
"We want to be able to keep the landfills that we have in operation for as long as we can. In order to do that we really have to focus on what can we revert from the landfill and that is, that's what recycling is all about," said Wyant.
The Swap Shop accepts most used goods. When people stop by, they can go to the Scale House or Administrative Office to see where their donations will go.
"We look through the items to make sure that they're not broken and they're not worn out and something that's definitely going to be of use and, if its not going to be of use, then it'll, it'll go," said Marie Sieck, Pottawattamie County Public Health Administrator.
After moving to a new location five years ago, the idea of a thrift-like store was something the Pottawattamie County Public Health Department envisioned for the space. In that space, there's plenty of items waiting for a new home, including furniture, seasonal finds and more.
"We also have some books in here, some good used kids items, and things like that, so there's a pretty wide variety of different materials that will come in and out of the Swap Shop," said Wyant.
Some things stick around longer than others but for the most part, 3 News Now was told inventory changes quite often.
The Swap Shop and the recycling center are open Tuesdays through Saturdays 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Download our apps today for all of our latest coverage.
Get the latest news and weather delivered straight to your inbox.
