The following letter was sent to NIOA President Charlie Warner. It is reproduced by permission.
Subject: Membership to NIOA Extremely Beneficial
April 17, 2014
Dear NIOA,
Many folks think that NIOA is an organization just for those working in Public Safety. I’m here to say otherwise. I’ve worked for the Waste Management Division with the City of Portsmouth for 13 years. During that time the media has come knocking many times. I’ve answered questions pertaining to refuse fees, code changes, or services provided.
The reason I joined NIOA originally was because of the weather. Hurricane Isabel hit our area in 2003, leaving us with much debris to dispose of. Hurricanes are pretty rare for our area. Information about our division was being posted and it was coming from other departments, not ours. Our citizens consider trash and bulk collection a serious matter and someone needed to speak on behalf of our division with the right information. I attended my first NIOA conference in 2004. Since that time, I’ve developed good relationships with our Communications and Marketing Department and our local media.
These relationships proved very beneficial last year when we began a curbside recycling program. I sent out press releases and the media helped promote our program. Articles appeared in the newspaper, stories on our local TV news stations, and interviews on our city cable channel. Social media also played a role in getting the information out. Curbside recycling began on August 19 and a TV news crew even followed one of our new recycling trucks along the route.
Our program has been extremely successful. We expected a 20% participation rate, but we’ve seen over 50% participation each month. Instead of paying $125 per ton to have our trash burned, we are recycling instead. Recycling makes sense environmentally and economically. I’m certain the media, and establishing a relationship with them early on, helped play a role in our successful recycling program.
I’m grateful for the training I’ve received from NIOA. It’s helped tremendously this past year. Folks shouldn’t think NIOA is for emergency services employees only; it’s also beneficial for those who really do talk “trash” for a living.
Sincerely,
Donna Corbus
Recycling Coordinator
City of Portsmouth
Department of General Services
Portsmouth, VA