AHUKINI — “Three shipping containers,” said Shantelle Rego of the county’s Solid Waste Division, Friday. “It’s not even noon, and we have three full containers. Normally, we do two containers every month.”
David Chung, the Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center team leader, confirmed what Rego said, kicking back in his chair while watching the ARC team unload the steady stream of residents’ cars containing items that would be contributed to ARC donation event at the Kaua‘i Resource Center on Ahukini Road and sharing the access road with the neighboring Lihu‘e Refuse Transfer Station, and the Reynold’s Hi5 redemption center.
“Yeah, we have more than 160 cars passing through,” Chung said. “And it’s not even noon, yet. That’s our third shipping container, and it’s already got no room. We’re going to have to start the overflow.”
Near by at the Ahukini parking lot, Milani Pimentel of the Rotary Club of Po‘ipu was showing some of the sights to her exchange student from Brazil who had arrived on Kaua‘i, Thursday night following a 15-hour flight from Brazil.
“He’s lucky to be so young,” Pimental said, asking about the activity taking place at the Kaua‘i Resource Center. “Yes, I’m going to be a Rotary mom for the next year while Nicolas Navarro attends Waimea High School. And yes, that monthly donation event is a very good program. It’s a shame it took so long before people realized how good the program is.”
Pimental who is also the director for the Kaua‘i Habitat for Humanity is familiar with the ARC program because of the ReStore thrift store connected with the Kaua‘i Habitat for Humanity. The ARC crew, usually arriving on-island several days ahead of the monthly donation day, is involved in getting overstock and not-moving items from the thrift store to be shipped to O‘ahu, rather than end up in the landfill.
Estimated at about 7,000 pounds per container, Friday’s collection represents more than 20,000 pounds of material that’s diverted from the landfill.
“And, we’re coming back in two weeks,” Chung said. “The next ARC monthly donation event is on Aug. 19 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. It’s also a long weekend (Admission Day holiday). Maybe I can talk with Capt. Shawn Keoho of the Salvation Army Lihu‘e Corps and the ARC team can do some outreach?”
