A Word from Vice Mayor Stefanie Dalton

Howdy, neighbors! The Earth has turned on its axis a whole 365 times since I last wrote an article for the City of Red Bank Newsletter. Time flies when you’re having fun! Last year, we focused on the truth about recycling, how you can reduce your plastic use, and how composting can save thousands of your tax dollars from being used to pay for disposal at the landfill. Let’s continue that conversation and talk about some more ways you can reduce your waste, dispose of your unwanted/unneeded items in an Earth-friendly way, and help your community all at the same time!

Last year, I shared our numbers on household waste collected and disposed of by the Red Bank Public Works Department: over 4,500 tons of household waste was disposed of (not including brush, dumpster, or leaf disposal) at a cost of over $136,000. Now, let’s compare those to the reported numbers for 2023: over 4,600 tons of household waste was disposed of at a cost of over $155,500 dollars. And those aren’t just any ol’ dollars. Those are our tax dollars. So, instead of reducing our waste, we increased it by over 100 tons and spent almost $20,000 more to dispose of it. That doesn’t feel great, but it’s never too late to do better!

One of the best ways you can reduce household waste is by composting. We talked about this last year, so I won’t do a deep-dive, but food waste is by far the heaviest and largest component of household waste. Try to remember to eat those leftovers so they don’t end up in the garbage. Consider starting a compost pile with a neighbor so that even if you don’t personally need nutrient-rich soil for gardening, you’re disposing of less in the garbage AND helping a neighbor -- and hey, I bet they’ll share whatever they’re able to grow with you! Even better -- if you have food items that are approaching their expiration date and you know you aren’t going to use them, consider donating them to the Red Bank Community Food Pantry or giving them away on the “Buy Nothing Red Bank, TN” Facebook group (great for asking for things in times of need or for giving away items you no longer want so that another neighbor can give them new life). There’s even a small community food pantry box located outside of the Red Bank Community Pantry (the back side of the Red Bank United Methodist Church on Redding Road) where you can place non-perishable food donations any time and neighbors can access them any time, day or night.

Now, let’s talk about all that other non-food stuff that can end up in the landfill. Do you have an old computer? Computer parts? Rechargeable batteries that don’t charge anymore? If so, our amazing recycling center employee, Lessily, would love to take those off of your hands at the Red Bank Recycling Center! And if you have books, you don’t need or want any longer, we have several little free libraries in Red Bank you can visit and donate to -- check out Lynda Drive, Ashmore Avenue, Sweetland Road, Dayton Boulevard at the Folk Music Store and at Bread & Butter, the Kids Corner Playground at Redding Road, and Hunter Trail for some cute little libraries that feature books for kids and adults of all ages. One of the little libraries on Hunter Trail even has “Fido’s Library” that features a basket full of tennis balls for your best dog friend!

Do you also have things like clothing, old light fixtures, knick-knacks, toys, bikes, beds, or old paint you’re looking to move out of your home? If you’re anything like me, you probably have a little bit of all of these things taking up space. You can always use the Buy Nothing Red Bank, TN group if you want to make it really easy on yourself -- folks will literally pick the items up themselves from your driveway or front porch. If you have the ability to transport things yourself, you can donate to our local Red Bank nonprofit thrift shops: Northside Neighborhood House Thrift Store or Chambliss Thrift Store. And instead of putting out old bikes for bulk trash pickup, please consider donating them to Red Bank nonprofit, White Oak Bicycle Co-op! You can drop off bike donations at the Recycling Center, Red Bank Fire Station #1, BeCaffeinated, or Sweat Club Gym. And if you’re unable to get things out of your home to donate and/or you just plain don’t have the time or energy to do it yourself, you can reach out to a Red Bank neighbor-owned business to help with that -- Marci owns More Room to Breathe, a home organizing and clutter pick-up service and she offers free phone consultations to get started. She’s also partnering with Sweat Club Gym on April 14th from 10am-2pm for a “Spring Cleaning Drop Day,” where you can donate things like clothing, school supplies, household items, unexpired dry and canned foods, and more! These items will then get donated to local Red Bank organizations, nonprofits, and schools.

And speaking of our Red Bank schools, every one of them has a Care Closet/pantry for students to access for things like clothing, hygiene items, food/snacks, and more. Alpine Crest, Red Bank, and Rivermont Elementary schools all have ongoing needs for youth clothing, including things like tennis shoes, underwear, pants, socks, and non-hooded sweatshirts -- you can contact the school directly for their needs, as there are some dress code requirements. Red Bank Middle and Red Bank High schools also have ongoing needs, particularly for clothing, hygiene items, and more. Rivermont even has a line-item budget for Care Closet needs, so if you don’t have items to donate but still want to help out, you can make a monetary donation to the school to support our children!

I could really go on and on about all of the amazing opportunities we have to connect with our neighbors and help by giving them a hand up, but this is a good start! Hopefully this helps you as you look for ways to recycle, upcycle, donate, and reduce waste in your own life. And if you want to take reducing waste quite LITTER-ally, I hope you’ll join the City on Saturday, April 20th, from 10am-12:30pm for our annual Earth Day clean-up event in partnership with GreenSteps and BeCaffeinated!

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Mayor Hollie Berry attended Audrey Conners 100th birthday party and presented her with a certificate in celebration of being one of Red Bank's longest lifetime residents.

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What is the biggest cause of lithium-ion batteries exploding?

Lithium-ion batteries can explode or catch fire due to a phenomenon called thermal runaway. Thermal runaway is a chain reaction that occurs when the battery experiences a rapid increase in temperature, leading to the release of energy and potentially causing a catastrophic failure.

What is the biggest problem with lithium batteries?

Disposal. Lithium-ion batteries contain metals such as cobalt, nickel, and manganese, which are toxic and can contaminate water supplies and ecosystems if they leach out of landfills. Additionally, fires in landfills or battery-recycling facilities have been attributed to inappropriate disposal of lithium-ion batteries.

       Safety tips for Lithium- ion batteries.

• Purchase and use devices that are listed by a qualified testing laboratory.
• Always follow the manufacturer's instructions.
• Only use the battery that is designed for the device.
• Put batteries in the device the right way.
• Only use the charging cord that came with the device.
• Do not charge a device under your pillow, on your bed, or on the couch.
• Do not keep charging the device or device battery after it is fully charged.
• Keep batteries at room temperature when possible. Do not charge them at temperatures below 32 degrees Fahrenheit or above 105 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Store batteries away from anything that can catch on fire.
• Do not put Lithium- ion batteries in the trash. Recycling is always the best option for disposal.

-Recycling location for Lithium-ion batteries in our area.

-City of Chattanooga Household Hazardous Waste Facility 4063 North Hawthorne Street Chattanooga Tn.

-Home Depot 1944 Northpoint Blvd. Hixson Tn.

-Lowes 5428 Hwy 153 Hixson Tn.

-Chattanooga Electric Bike Co. 1404 McCallie Ave, Suite 102 Chattanooga Tn.

-REI 2507 Lifestyle Way Chattanooga Tn.

We hope this gives you a better understanding on Lithium-ion Batteries.

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