Tips to Reduce Waste Going to the Landfill

updated April 17, 2026 - some content has been updated to reflect changes since the orginal blog post was written.

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Are you ready to Take the 2023 Reduce Waste Pledge? Now is an exciting time to pledge and plan how you will Reduce Waste going to the landfill. No doubt it’s hard to break the throw it in the trash can routine but with a little effort and planning you’ll see the difference you are making quickly. This is the first article in a series related to waste reduction. In this article we introduce more Rs like Repair, Repurpose, and Refuse! These tips will help you plan how to reduce waste and ways to build community relations in your neighborhood, community, school, dorm, or Homeowner’s Association (HOA) collectively to reduce waste.

Reduce Waste Tips

The first step is to take the pledge and plan to reduce your waste. This is a significant step because it will prompt you to be prepared for how you’ll keep waste out of the biggest trash can of all - the landfill.

1. Wait to replace the product - it’s easy to buy the latest product but keeping an item longer saves money and resources.

2. Repair - repair is becoming more popular to save money and resources and extend the life of your item. UPDATE Check Events for the next Repair Cafe Event.

3. Borrow/Lend/Give - look for Lending or Community Giving/Blessing Boxes and Tools to Borrow or Other Items to Borrow.

• Little Free Library - lists local book boxes to lend, give or borrow a book.

• There are several in Monongalia County or start your own!

• Check out ways to repurpose items to create your Little Free Library

• Community Giving/Blessing Boxes include food, hygiene items, pet food and other helpful products for people in need.

• There are several in Monongalia County, but we don't have a list or a map of them. Below are a few we knew in 2021.

1. Corner of Dorsey and Southern Avenues, Morgantown

2. In front of Suncrest Elementary School, Morgantown

3. Mt. Pleasant UMC at Kingwood Pike

4. Maidsville at Meadow Ponds

5. At The Shack, Morgantown

6. Holland and Cleveland Ave in Westover

7. At the Arnettsville Library

• Tools or Other Items to Borrow - communities are partnering to lend tools, and other items, to residents.

  • ToolBank is a national entity that will help set up programs locally.

  • Morgantown and Cheat Lake Library locations lend games and specialty kits - like bird watching kits.

4. Swap - hold an Outerwear Clothing or General Swap Event where clothing or a variety of clean and reusable items are swapped for free.

5. Donate your clean and gently used items to local charities.

6. Repurpose by upcycling and DIY by making other products to reuse in a new way.

• See The Little Free Library repurpose ideas!

7. Recycle the product if possible.

General Recycling - Below are the current Monongalia County options available to recycle most items like paper, bottles, plastics, and aluminum cans.

• Monongalia County Commission Recycling Drop-off Center - single stream recycling is located at as of August 7, 2025 the Center moved from the City of Westover City Hall location to 34 Olin St. in Industrial Park) - open Monday - Friday 7:00 - 3:30 pm For more information moncountyrecycling.com

• Western Mon County Recycling - source separated recycling is located at 4120 Fairmont Road - next to Arnettsville Library - open 24/7 - for more information contact the Marion County Solid Waste Authority 304-825-1976

• Dominion Post On-site Recycling - Effective October 2024, the Dominion Post Recycling area, which was located next to the DP building, is now closed indefinitely.

• UPDATED City of Morgantown Residents only - Single stream Recycling Drop-off Event located at Mountaineer Transfer Station every 2nd Saturday of the month.

  

  For more information visit Recycling City of Morgantown

Hard to Recycle and Dispose of Items Events

• Check our Events page on our website for Hard to Recycle Items Events for Household Hazardous Waste, or click the links to visit the E-cycle, and Tires webpages on our website.

• Books

  • Appalachian Prisons Book Project - accepts some paperback books. See the donate page for specific information about books they accept.

  • Little Free Library - use the Little Free Library World Map Search Tool to find a local Little Free Library to share your books (not limited to paperbacks).

• Mail-in Options

  • TerraCycle - provides some free and paid options and programs to recycle a ton of hard to recycle items through shipping.

8. Refuse single-use items like straws, utensils, bags (plastic and paper) and packaging.

• Shop for items with less packaging.

• Shop the Farmers Market where there is less packaging.

• Forget your bags? Add “Bags” to the top of your list or put a reminder in your phone.

• Visit Plastic Free July to Take the Pledge to Choose to Refuse Single-Use Plastics and for resources to help tackle this challenge!

9. Use Reusable/Rechargeable Products

• Purchase reusable travel mugs, water bottles, bags, rechargeable batteries and more.

10. Plan Meals and make a list to purchase only what you need to reduce food waste.

11. Leave Grass Clippings on the lawn.

12. Compost - start a community composting program, take a class or purchase a composting bin.

• WVU Campus Food Garden and Urban Farm provides volunteer opportunities for residents to learn about growing their own food, composting and how to create your own composting bin and much more.

• For more information visit their iServe page and follow them on Facebook for updates and tips.

Start the new year by taking the 2023 Reduce Waste Pledge and plan how you’ll reduce waste going to the landfill. Visit our website to Take the 2023 Reduce Waste Pledge, and to find a list of Monongalia County recycling sites, recycling events and more.