Rotarians support Front Street Recycling Program

From left, Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunrise members Jesse Neisman, Suzanne Medcalf and David Ristau paint trash barrels and attach new recycling signs.
LAHAINA – In May, the Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunrise applied a sealer to the oak trash barrels in Lahaina and added two more recycling signs to each barrel.
Starting early on a Saturday morning, they were able to finish all 35 trash barrels by 10:30 a.m. This yearly club service project has extended the life of the wooden barrels by many years.
Lahaina Restoration Foundation (LRF), which is responsible for the daily removal of trash from the oak trash barrels, instituted a unique recycling system a few years ago.
LRF noticed that a variety of people were coming by on a regular basis to search through the barrels for cans and bottles. Additionally, when the trash bags are picked up every morning, LRF staff remove any remaining bottles and cans.
This program does not require any recycling containers on the already crowded Lahaina sidewalks, nor does it require any additional manpower.
During the recent workday, two more “Cans Bottles OK” signs with the official recycling logo were added to the barrels to let the public know about the recycling effort.
Now, each barrel has three signs, so pedestrians are comfortable throwing their HI-5 recyclables in the trash barrels.
Lahaina Restoration Foundation and the Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunrise work cooperatively on many town-wide improvement projects.
In recent years, they installed several bike racks in Banyan Tree Park and completed a cement walkway next to the Lahaina Harbor restrooms.
The Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunrise meets weekly every Tuesday at 7 a.m. at the Pioneer Inn for breakfast. The public is welcome to attend the breakfast meetings. There is a fee of $10.