In Sanpete County, recycling may involve carting away bundles of newspapers and boxes of aluminum pop cans.
Or it may involve turning old buildings - churches, schools and houses, sometimes vacant for years - to new uses.Four old houses - two of them built of stone in the pioneer era - have become bed-and-breakfast inns. And dozens of others, their exteriors refurbished, their interiors gutted and then rebuilt with modern heating, lighting and plumbing, continue their role as family homes.
Sometimes the goal has been low-cost housing. Sometimes the remodeling had other purposes.
Larry Braithwaite, a Manti native who has spent most of his adult years as a builder in northern Utah and Arizona, came "home" recently and has rehabilitated two of the older homes. One of them stood vacant for years among a small orchard of apple trees. He and his wife live in one of the houses; the other is occupied by his daughter, son-in-law and their children.
"If we decided to sell, we'd be lucky to get out of those houses what we've put into them in money and labor," Braithwaite said.
"We love this town. We did it for the history, the atmosphere, to help maintain the memories and the uniqueness of our town."
Church buildings have had a similar treatment. When an LDS chapel in Gunnison was replaced by a more adequate structure, the old church house wasn't razed.
It's now, with modifications, the Gunnison City Hall. It also provides quarters for the senior citizens and other civic groups.
The old stone Presbyterian church in Manti, built of oolite limestone cut from a local quarry a century ago, is now Legion Hall. Its tower still intact, its bell still ringing out for celebrations, the exterior remains pioneer. But the interior is modern now, with a kitchen and rest rooms. It is used not only for Legion meetings, but also for reunions, family gatherings, workshops and seminars.
But most projects have involved old schoolhouses.
In Fairview, two long-abandoned schools have become the Fairview Museum of History and the Arts. In Spring City, a vacant school has become the city hall and home for the senior citizens group. In Mayfield, the schoolhouse has become Mayfield Manor, a rest home.
The most extensive recycling of a school building has occurred in Manti. And the project is already paying the city big dividends.
Manti High School moved into a new building on the north side of the city several years ago, and the schoolhouse built in 1908 on a choice Main Street location became available.
It was a critical time for the city because office space was in very short supply. Two government agencies had already moved away and several others were threatening to leave.
The city leaders acted promptly. They obtained a 50-year lease on the vacant building from the South Sanpete School District for $1,000 a year, asked the state and federal agencies what they needed in the way of quarters and embarked on a $300,000 remodeling project.
The money came from a $30,000 bequest from the Eva Beal Anderson estate, a $50,000 Community Impact Board grant, a 15-year, 4 1/2 percent loan from the board of $200,000, and a budget allocation.
The former school, renamed the Manti City Building, now houses six state and federal agencies that pay $38,000 a year in rent. That $38,000 takes care of the operating and maintenance costs of the building and the interest and principal payments on the loan. The loan will be paid off in the year 2001.
Other benefits, while not measured in dollars, are very real too. The city has its offices on the first floor. On the second floor are club rooms, a kitchen and an auditorium with seating for 300.
A new elevator provides easy access to the club rooms and the auditorium for the elderly and handicapped. Adding to the convenience is an enclosed walkway that connects the city building's second floor with the public library, 60 feet away.