Speaking of Green: Free Tire Drop-Off at Knott Landfill

Deschutes County’s Knott Landfill throws a free tire collection day twice a year, and Saturday was one of those days.

Residents can bring tires, on- or off-rim, and drop them off for free.

Normally, the fee for a regular tire is $5, and for a tire on the rim it’s $8.

The landfill usually accumulates 10,000 to 15,000 tires per event.

Since they started doing this back in 2001, they estimate taking in 250,000 tires.

“People just tend to save them up, they can be a problem for mosquitoes during the summer time, and they are nuisance to get rid of because normally there is a fee to dispose of them,” said landfill Operations Manager Chad Centola. “We take them for free — it’s pretty painless, they come in, we’ve got lots of kids helping out today and off they go.”

There is no industrial scale-recycling for the tires. So they give the tires to a company out in Prineville that chops them up and puts them in a special landfill.

For the tires on rims, the landfill will recycle the scrap metal.

Volunteers from the Heart of Oregon Corps, a non-profit group in Central Oregon, were on scene helping out.

Also at Knott Landfill Saturday was the Redmond Cascade Swim Club.

Over a dozen kids were on hand helping to pick up trash as part of a fund-raiser for the club.

The members said they were hoping to receive $800 to $900 from their landfill cleanup.

The money will help fund the activities they do throughout the year, including swim meets and coaching.

Volunteers say they’re always looking for a way to raise money for the club so that the kids can enjoy a great cardiovascular activity, even if it means picking up the trash.

“Swimming is a great activity, very family-oriented,” said Trent Sieler, Cascade Swim Club volunteer. “You’re at the meets, it’s families. You compete as a family.”

Sieler says he and his wife came from Illinois and were really into ice hockey but got involved with swimming. He says it’s a great activity for his kids and he highly recommends parents get their kids involved.