Orcas Island ExchangeA Big Thanks to AmeriCorps
Our heartfelt thanks go out to the AmeriCorps workers who volunteered their help to Orcas Recycling Services in February. Eleven workers spent Saturday the 2nd doing a variety of tasks–cleaning up garbage spread around by seagulls…
Where Does All the Food Waste Go?
Late last year when the nation-wide recycling crisis consumed the news, we decided to push forward on our Recycle 2.0 program, hoping it would advance the conversation about achieving a zero-waste community. Food waste has been…
Keeping Waste Local: Need a Garbage Can?
ORS was recently approached by Lotioncrafter, one of our awesome local companies, about what to do with the excess 55 gallon steel drums they have as a by-product of their business. They are beautiful barrels, brand-new,…
Hazardous Waste Roundup March 8th
After years of once-a-year pickups that many of us missed, ORS and San Juan County have finally introduced quarterly collection events managed on-island. Our second local collection event is Friday March 8th from 10 a.m. to…
SAVE THE DATE: Great Islands Clean Up Spring 2019
Saturday, April 20, 2019 will be our next Great Islands Clean Up event from 10am to 2pm. Be sure to SAVE THE DATE! Bags, grabbers, safety vests and latex gloves will be available at the San…
Awesome “Talking Trash” Community Forum!
On November 3rd more than 30 committed folks joined ORS/The Exchange in a community forum to visualize the future of the solid waste management here on Orcas, and for all of San Juan County. Conversations covered the…
Be Mindful of Holiday Packaging
It’s that time of year again when you order stuff online (yes, most of us do it) and we get inundated with retailer packaging materials and gift wrapping products that are, unfortunately, not recyclable. We’re reminding everyone…
WATCH: How The Orcas Exchange Became a Zero Waste Model
Watch the story of how a rag-tag island swap meet turned into a model non-profit, zero-waste reuse and recycling facility.
My Exchange Story: Mount Baker Farm
When Ruth, Cheryl and Barb bought the Mount Baker Farm property on Orcas Island, they were determined to offer a unique experience for islanders and tourists, alike. They did this by creating 58 campsites that sit…
Solstice Parade Costumes Designed at Exchange Workshop
We love doing things that support reuse in the community so we were happy to host a Solstice Parade Costume Workshop here at The Exchange. This free event allowed parade participants to work on their designs…
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