Navajo Nation complimented on recycling efforts

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. – With the world taking a global stance on preserving the Earth, Navajo Nation did it’s part this past week at the First Annual Treaty Day Celebration by incorporating recycling efforts into its maintenance of the fairgrounds.

Around 50,000 people flooded into Window Rock for the inaugural event, and with them came a lot of trash. But the Navajo Nation was prepared.

Preceding the event, sanitation coordinator Art Moore took it upon his self to write the world’s third largest producer of aluminum, Alcoa Inc., and ask for donations of some type of recycling bins.

Complying with his request, Alcoa generously donated several cardboard and plastic bins to help store recycled goods. The bins proved to be necessary with the high attendance, and the efforts were much appreciated.

“ There were several vendors who complimented our team saying how clean everything was,” Moore stated. “Never before had they seen fairgrounds so clean.”

Staffed with only a team of six members from the Christian volunteer group, 180 Youth, Moore worked six endless days and nights cleaning the fair’s midway, carnival grounds and rodeo arena picking up trash and recycling aluminum cans.

The efforts of Moore and his staff proved successful, but not without a few roadblocks.

“In its entirety, the recycling went okay. There are still those who are accustomed to throwing whatever they have away. We need to educate the public more on what’s going on in the world so they realized the importance of recycling.”

After setting the standard of how sanitation should be handled at future fairs to come, Navajo Nation is already looking towards the future. Moore explained how for the Navajo Nation Fair he expects to receive more support in his recycling efforts and hopes to receive money so that the fairs can now have their own bins.

All of the money generated from the cans was donated to 180 Youth for its efforts in helping Navajo Nation “go green”.

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