Registration is now open for the inaugural Quad Cities Pollinator Conference, June 10-11, 2015 at Jumer's Casino and Hotel in Rock Island, IL. This two-day event features a keynote dinner by John Phipps, commentator for U.S. Farm Report, titled, "Shades of Grey: Communicating Science to an Anxious Public." With insights from his farm to the TV studio, Phipps will share experiences and working rules for explaining probabilistic technical information to audiences craving black and white answers.

Throughout the two days, participants will also attend a variety of educational sessions from experts, such as May Berenbaum, Ph.D, Department of Entomology, University of Illinois, on: plant-pollinator relationships, pollinator decline, designing pollinator support plantings, conservation measures, pollinator-friendly landscapes in agricultural and urban settings, and more. In addition, individuals can attend an optional off-site workshop and tours.

This conference is geared toward: the agricultural community; municipal, state and federal government employees; landowners; homeowners; beekeepers; and educators. The conference will provide a platform for knowledge-sharing, open dialogue, networking, and pollinator-related goods and services.

Pollinators are a critical natural resource in agriculture and healthy ecosystems, but there has been a significant pollinator decline over the past few decades. Of the 100 crops that make up 90% of the global food supply, 71 are dependent on bees. Although our main cash crops are self-pollinating, insects do pollinate both plants and may be more important than historically thought. Honey bee pollination alone adds more than $15 billion in value to agricultural crops each year in the United States.

Pre-registration for the event is required. Exhibitor space & sponsorships are available. For registration and information, visit www.qcpollinatorconference.org or call Nahant Marsh at (563) 323-5196.

The conference is sponsored by: Nahant Marsh; U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service; Soil & Water Conservation Districts of Rock Island, Scott and Henry counties; Rock Island County Farm Bureau, Scott County Farm Bureau, The Singh Family Charitable Giving Fund, Wallace's Garden Center, Waste Commission of Scott County and Radish magazine.

DAVENPORT, Iowa–Area residents can safely dispose of old medications, exchange mercury thermometers for a digital,  drop off compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs and mercury thermostats, pick up and drop off medical sharps containers, have data-sensitive documents shredded, and new this year, drop off new and gently used home health equipment and supplies during Operation Medicine Cabinet, September 20-22, 2012.

Operation Medicine Cabinet will be in Eldridge, Bettendorf and Davenport from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the following locations:

•                    Thursday, September 20 at Medic EMS Facility, LeClaire Road & Highway 61, Eldridge

•                    Friday, September 21 at Surrey Heights Fire Station, 5002 Crow Creek Road, Bettendorf

•                    Saturday, September 22 at Scott Area Recycling Center, 5640 Carey Avenue, Davenport

Operation Medicine Cabinet events are free of charge and open to residents of eastern Iowa and western Illinois. Business waste will not be accepted at these events. Following is additional information and guidelines about each type of item that will be collected.

Medications

Properly disposing of pharmaceuticals and medications reduces the risk of mis-medication, accidental poisoning, theft, drug abuse and pollution of our waterways & groundwater caused by flushing. At the event:

•                    Prescription and non-prescription drugs will be accepted

•                    Medications can be left in original containers

•                    Scott County law-enforcement officials supervise the disposal of all materials

Document Shredding

Document Destruction and Recycling Services is providing secure document shredding to reduce the risk of identity theft. During the event, documents are kept in locked containers and then transported to their secure, certified facility for shredding. At the event:

•                    Documents for shredding should be in bags or cardboard boxes; containers will not be returned

•                    Only paper documents will be accepted for shredding

•                    Staples and paperclips in paper documents are acceptable

•                    Binders and metal rings in paper documents are not acceptable

Medical Sharps

Medical sharps, such as needles, lancets and syringes should not be thrown into the regular trash, as this poses a safety threat to children, pets and refuse collection & landfill employees. At the event:

•                    Sharps for disposal must be in a sealed, rigid container

•                    New red, rigid Sharps containers will be provided to customers upon request

Mercury-Containing Items

Items containing mercury, such as thermometers, thermostats and compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs should not be thrown in the trash due to health and environmental concerns. At the event:

•                    Mercury thermometers, thermostats and CFLs must be packaged to prevent breakage

•                    Only one digital thermometer will be given per household

Home Health Equipment and Supplies

Habitat for Humanity ReStore recently opened a Health & Home division with a goal of diverting usable health products from area landfills and providing affordable home health equipment for those with health issues. Items that will be accepted at the event include :

•                    Canes

•                    Crutches

•                    Hand grips

•                    Packaged supplies that are unopened or not expired (bandage items, diapers, ostomy supplies, tubing, boots, slings)

•                    Shower chairs

•                    Vision magnifiers & other aids for low vision

•                    Walker baskets

•                    Wheelchairs

ReStore Health & Home accepts other medical supplies and equipment at their store. For more information, visit www.restoreqc.org or call (563) 349-7339.

This event is sponsored by: City of Bettendorf, Bettendorf Police Department, Davenport Police Department, Document Destruction and Recycling Services, Generations Area Agency on Aging, Habitat ReStore Health & Home, Iowa American Water, Medic EMS, Retired & Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), Scott County Health Department, Scott County Sheriff's Office, Waste Commission of Scott County and Western Illinois Area Agency on Aging.

For additional information about the event, call Waste Commission of Scott County at (563) 381-1300 or visit www.wastecom.com.

This is the seventh annual Operation Medicine Cabinet. Last year's event served 1,275 households and yielded 18,805 pounds of material and 1,497 mercury-containing devices. This included approximately 1,711 pounds of pharmaceuticals, 831 pounds of sharps, 16,263 pounds of documents for shredding and 200 mercury thermometers, 21 mercury thermostats and 1,276 mercury-containing light bulbs.

DAVENPORT, IA–Waste Commission of Scott County (Commission) is encouraging area residents to clear their garages, homes and workshops of household hazardous materials (HHM) during the month of June. HHM are items such as paints, pesticides, cleaners and other toxins that are no longer in use. This reduces the risk of accidental poisoning and fires and ensures environmentally sound disposal of these materials through the Commission's HHM program. The service is free to residents in Scott County, Iowa and Rock Island County, Illinois.

The Commission accepts these items by appointment on Mondays, Tuesdays and Saturdays at its facilities in Davenport and Buffalo. Appointments are required to ensure adequate staffing to handle the hazardous materials, which leads to shorter wait times for the customer.

To make an appointment, residents should first take a rough inventory of their materials and then visit www.wastecom.com or call (563) 381-1300 to choose the facility, date and time that is most convenient. Residents who make an appointment by June 30 are entered in a drawing to win one of thirteen $25 gift cards from K&K Hardware in Bettendorf.

If residents do not have material to dispose of at this time, there is still al chance to win! The Commission is gathering data on opinions and awareness related to local hazardous waste disposal options. Everyone who takes the survey automatically receives a coupon for $5 off a $25 purchase at K&K Hardware and is entered to win a $250 gift card to K&K Hardware. Visit www.wastecomgiveaway.com by June 10 to be entered to win.

The Commission is an inter-governmental agency that operates the Scott Area Landfill, Scott Area Recycling Center, Scott Area Household Hazardous Material Facilities and the Electronic Demanufacturing Facility. In addition, it provides public education and outreach through the iLivehere: myhome ourcommunity® program. For more information about the Commission visit www.wastecom.com.