Kona Recycles @ Kealakehe: The pilot recycling project was funded as part of an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant to the County of Hawai`i, Department of Environmental Management and Hawai'i Island Economic Development Board (HIEDB). Recycle Hawai`i's job is to educate the public about this positive county direction.

School Recycle Challenge:  The School Recycle Challenge was an annual event that was open to all schools and ran through the month of February.  This island-wide competition was a cooperative project among businesses, government and non-profit organizations.  The students were encouraged to collect the most aluminum cans, cell phones, glass, #2 plastic milk jugs, ink jet/toner cartridges, and/or paper fiber (white office paper, corrugated cardboard and newspaper.  At the end of the Challenge, cash prizes and gift certificates were awarded to the top three schools in each of three school sizes for the six (6) categories of materials collected.  Many Big Island recyclers supported this annual event.

This was a great opportunity for students to experience more than classroom education on topics of reducing, recycling, and reusing resources.  Comments from participating schools in past years confirmed that children learned first hand how to recycle and what benefits their individual and collective efforts can bring.  An archive for the past years' results is also available.

USDA for Rural Utilities Service Grant in 2005/06:  Provided training of personnel to operate volunteer-driven recycling/reuse centers at or in proximity to rural transfer stations and to continue implementing plans to eliminate causes of illegal dumping in Hawai`i County’s rural communities.  Mixed recycling stations were expedited at the Pahala and Laupahoehoe transfer stations and re-use tents were initiated at the Laupahoehoe and Keauhou transfer stations. A series of illegal dump community clean-ups were conducted in conjunction with the USDA-RUS grant and the Matson Navigation “Ka Ipu `Aina" (Container for the Land) grant program.

USDA for Rural Utilities Service in 2004/2005: Started October 2004, to run through September 2005. Grant focused on seeking ideas on illegal dumping solutions in rural communities. Allowed for several community clean ups as well as an instructional video called "Malama I Ka 'Aina - Caring for the Land" were produced for communities to assist them in any future clean ups.

USDA for Rural Utilities Service in 2003/2004: Started October 2003 and ran through September 2004. Grant focused on seeking ideas on illegal dumping solutions in rural communities. Allowed for several community clean ups.

USDA for Rural Utilities Service in 2002/2003: Started October 2002 and ran through September 2003. Grant focused on reuse/scavenging of usable commodities at transfer stations. Grant completed in September 2003.

USDA for Rural Utilities Service in 2001/2002: Started October 2001, and ran through September 2002. Grant focused on recycling options in the rural communities of Ocean View, Naalehu, Pahoa and Mountain View. Updated and published the USDA Rural Utilties Services Guidelines 2002. Grant completed in September 2002.

Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park - development of an Integrated Solid Waste Alternatives Plan for the park, including waste composition, costs and trends leading to mechanisms that can reduce their waste by 40% by the year 2003.

Partnership with the County of Hawai'i and the State of Hawai'i sponsored by Environmental Protection Agency - Determined full-cost accounting of our solid waste, facilitated a community-based exploration of resource management options for the island, and facilitated the development of a community-based residential cost recovery system. Collaborated with an ad hoc solid waste advisory committee to follow the work plan of this project and prepared the Rural Pay-As-You-Throw Guide.

County Research & Development - A survey for glass container usage on the island. The data will support feasibility of setting up a glass manufacturing plant on the island which will be explored by R&D.

Aluminum Bin Recycling Project - Volunteers from Recycle Hawai`i and Hilo High School Key Club assist in building aluminum can recycling bins to be placed at island parks, businesses and community events. Provided through a generous grant from the Bill Healy Foundation and the Kona Brewer's Festival organizers.