Centre County residents, in a continuous succession of cars Friday afternoon, extolled the benefits of the region's new recycling drop-off center on North Atherton Street.

"I think it's important because there is too much junk in the environment already," Lemont resident Delores McChesney said as she dropped a conglomeration of papers, glass and plastic bottles into their appropriate bins.

"You should just see the highways," she said. "The amount of trash between here and Harrisburg is astounding. People don't care; they just throw it anywhere."

The center, sponsored by the Centre County Solid Waste Authority, is located at the Bi-Lo supermarket, 1605 N. Atherton St. It has received a warm reception from the community, said Denny Waslohn, Bi-Lo's Market Manager.

"I was glad to be able to provide the location and get it started," Waslohn said.

The center, installed by the authority on Jan. 31, consists of a brown shed with separate compartments for amber glass, green glass, clear glass, plastic soda bottles and aluminum cans. An additional grey shed houses old newspapers.

Plans for six or seven similar centers hinge on the construction of an intermediate processing facility which will prepare the recyclables for market, said Irene Ferrara, recycling coordinator for Centre County Solid Waste Authority.

"We are advertising for bids for construction of the building which is scheduled to begin in April and to be completed by September," Ferrara said.

Along with the proposed centers, the Centre County Solid Waste Authority will implement curbside collection of a majority of Centre County households in September, she said.

Under this program, households that receive curbside collection containers will be expected to prepare recyclables and to place them in the containers on a specified collection day, she said.

Some advocates of the program are already requesting more recycling centers, while others say the center's convenient location motivates people to use it more.

One State College resident said sorting the garbage requires an extra, but worthwhile, effort.

"I don't see why a family wouldn't use it because it's a good way to get rid of stuff," said Bill Moerschbacher, 631 Easterly Parkway.

A drop-off recycling center similar to the one on North Atherton Street was proposed for campus but the idea was dismissed as impractical, said Charles Brueggebors, director of the University's Physical Plant.

"We can't deal with 7,000 tons of garbage at a drop-off center," he said. "That is why we're working on curbside pickup service on an everyday basis. Trash would be prepared for recycling bins and the Centre County Solid Waste Authority would pick it up."

A mandatory recycling proposal is currently under negotiation between the University and the Centre County Solid Waste Authority, Ferrara said.

The plan would require students and faculty to separate aluminum, clear glass, cardboard, newsprint and office paper, Brueggebors said.

The proposal, written by University student Barbara Boyd, was originally submitted last October and revised in December, Brueggebors said.

Although the recycling center has produced a positive response from the community, some University students said a similar program on campus would not be effective.

"People on campus and kids downtown just don't have the room to store garbage and sort it out," Michele Procino (sophomore-advertising) said.