Historic Incinerator: We've Come A Long Way

Historic Incinerator: We've Come A Long Way. . , Before garbage trucks and waste facilities, people were left to manage their own trash. Incinerating trash was a common way to get rid of garbage by burning it in structures like the one you see here. The consequence was dirty air and a polluted environment., This incinerator is probably from the 1930s and was used to burn trash from early concertgoers and park visitors, including glass, plastic, metal paper, and food waste., The incinerator was placed here to keep smoke away from the amphitheatre and areas that the public liked to visit, but smoke probably still backed up into the amphitheatre when the winds were right., Denver area homes built before the 1960s often had a brick or concrete incinerator in the back yard for burning household trash. Many are still visible in older neighborhoods, though burning trash is no longer allowed in most cities because it creates air pollution and releases toxic dioxins into the environment., Help keep Red Rocks clean by placing your waste in designated trash and recycle bins located throughout the park., (photo caption) , A similar incinerator in use in Los Angeles. The photo was taken just before Los Angeles County banned all outdoor refuse burning in 1957 when pollution was already a concern. Denver began to regulate open burning as early as 1950., From "Burn" to "Turn It" , By the 1950s it was clear that waste burning was dangerous to the environment and to our health, and by the 1960s there was growing concern that lands were running out of space. The solution was waste diversion, "turning away" from the landfills those materials that could be recycled into useful products. Municipal recycling diverted only 6 percent of waste in 1960 but increased diversion to over 35 percent by 2017, and the amount keeps growing. Recent progress in composting helps even more. , At Red Rocks, waste materials are collected and brought to the Depot for further processing and shipping. We recycle plastic, aluminum paper, and cardboard. We compost food scraps as well., (photo caption) , The Depot, located in the upper north lot at Rod Rocks was built in 2018-19 to accommodate the process of diverting waste materials from the landfills as part of Denver's sustainability goals. It features a green roof using native grasses, as well as sandstone and weathered steel construction to blend into the surroundings., , Waste Diversion at Red Rocks , . , At Red Rocks, our record diversion rate hit a whopping 81 percent in 2019, but it's a challenge to keep up that number. Limited capacity of local waste facilities reduced our diversion volume, but we're improving., So now it's up to you! , You can help us recapture that 81% and more by managing your waste materials on site and using the provided waste, recycling, and composting receptacles. Thank you!, Funding for this interpretive panel was provided by the Denver Mountain Parks Foundation and the family of Rosemary Hallam Hartman in her memory.