Eco-Friendly County
Mahoning County employees work year round to make every day Earth Day. Mahoning County is involved in recycling and reusing programs, soil and water conservation, replenishing the tree population, as well as, water treatment and waste management programs every day of the year. We are using Earth Day 2006 as a catalyst to introduce this Eco-Friendly page of our site. As seen in the articles by the departments below, Mahoning County is a great place to live and getting even better every day thanks to the hard work and diligence of our community and many of our county employees.
Earth Day Every Day
Earth Day, celebrated every April 22nd, is a time for people take pause and consider all of the wonderful ways they can help the Earth. In Mahoning County, the Green Team makes this task very simple. The Green Team, through a comprehensive solid waste management plan, provides numerous recycling opportunities and waste reduction strategies for Mahoning County residents.
Recycling, defined as the recovery and reuse of materials that would otherwise be wasted, has many benefits. Recycling conserves natural resources, saves energy, and extends landfill life. Recycling is also something simple that everyone can do and in Mahoning County, we make this task seem effortless. The Green Team currently provides access for 94,700 households to participate in curbside recycling. We also have 35 drop-off sites located throughout the county and provide special collections for material such as computers, appliances, and household hazardous waste. But the opportunities don’t stop here. The Green Team also facilitates recycling programs for Mahoning County schools, businesses, and libraries. During the summer, we provide recycling for the Canfield Fair and other festivals.
Although recycling is an important way to care for the Earth, it is not the only way. Litter prevention is also very important. The Green Team, a Keep America Beautiful certified community, supplies tools to volunteer for community clean-ups. We also fund litter law enforcement officers who are cracking down on the litter problem.
There are many ways people can help take care of the Earth, and through the efforts of the Green Team, there are ample opportunities. I encourage Mahoning County residents to realize and take advantage of all of the earth-saving opportunities that are available to them. Let’s make every day Earth Day.
WHAT DO TREES MEAN TO OUR ENVIRONMENT?
Perhaps because of their constant presence, most of us rarely, if ever, give much thought to the importance of trees in our lives or communities. We may take them for granted, or just see them as decorations. To illustrate the impact trees have on our environment, take a journey into your past and read or re-read the book by Dr. Seuss, The Lorax.
As memory serves me, the book begins with a lush landscape of beautiful trees, clean water and home to wildlife. However as the story progresses, trees are cut down by the Once-ler and the once thriving landscape changes where the animals flee for lack of food and shelter, the air is dark and the water supply dirty. All the time The Lorax begs the Once-ler to stop destroying the forest.
Although we do not live in fairy tale, think about how our environment would suffer if we uprooted our own trees. Trees provide shade in summer and shelter in winter; trees planted around our homes help reduce heating and cooling costs. During summer, trees can block the sun and have a cooling effect on us and our homes, and during the winter months, trees can keep us warmer by shielding us from wind and snow.
Trees improve the very air we breathe by absorbing harmful chemicals such as carbon monoxide and in turn giving off oxygen. As well, they filter and trap pollutants such as smoke, dust, and ash making our air cleaner. 
Finally, where water is concerned, trees not only absorb water - preventing flooding, but they also help disperse rainfall over a more even area. As well, by retaining water, trees help reduce the amount of topsoil that runs off into our sewers and streams. Leaves on the ground, keep moisture close to the ground aiding growth and traps chemicals keeping them out of lakes and rivers.
But remember trees not only benefit our physical environment, but also attract birds and other wildlife, making our urban centers a more pleasant place to live. When you think of the environment, try to remember the Mahoning County SWCD; we can help with tree sales, bird seed and bird feeder sales, technical assistance with drainage problems and how to keep our water sources clean. Earth Day is an important time to think of what we will be leaving our children in the future but more important – EVERY DAY IS EARTH DAY!
Find out more about the Soil and Water Conservation District
The Lorax, by Dr. Seuss; Random House, New York, 1971.
MAHONING COUNTY SANITARY ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
A PARTNER IN PROTECTING OUR NATURAL RESOURCES
The Mahoning 
County Sanitary Engineering Department, through the seven treatment facilities operated on a daily basis, provide the highest level of wastewater treatment to protect one of our most valuable natural resources, water. The efforts of the Sanitary Engineering Department return a clean and reusable product to the areas streams, creeks, rivers and waterways. The treatment process of the department allows for the sustaining of aquatic life in waterways and allows for lakes to be utilized for recreational activities. Since water covers over 75% of our planet, the need for wastewater treatment to protect the very small percentage able to be used and reused daily is crucial. Earth Day gives us the opportunity to show how the Mahoning County Sanitary Engineering Department is doing a part to protect our resources.