America Recycles TODAY

Wow, it's been a while since I've posted on here. I wanted to break my silence though as a friend/coworker pointed out to me last week that today has been labeled "America Recycles Day."

I think I've made clear my feelings toward recycling in the past, so I won't ramble on. But I wanted to share this website and its resources should you be interested in getting more information. Keep America Beautiful has lots of tips about why recycling and beautification is important and how to get started with small steps.

If you choose, you can also complete the America Recycles Day Pledge and start making a difference in your community. Here is what the pledge entails:

• I pledge to find out what materials I can and cannot recycle in my curbside recycling program.
  (Or in my case, facilities in the area.)
• I pledge to lead by example in my place of work or school by recycling.
  (I'm in charge of my office's recycling. I brought in a box and simply ask coworker to place recyclables there instead of the trash, and I take care of it when it's full.)
• I pledge to recycle my used batteries, cell phones and other electronic waste through a take-back program or e-waste facility near me.
  (Earth911.com is a great resource for finding places to recycle electronic waste. As I mentioned in an earlier post, most Target stores, now have electronic waste recycling bins.)
• I pledge to tell five friends that recycling is one of the easiest things they can do to reduce their carbon emissions.
  (That's where you come in. I'm not sure how many readers I have, but I just want to get the word out. )

I know it's impossible to be perfect. But even if there's just one thing you can do differently to help out our planet and your community, why not put forth the small effort? Happy America Recycles Day!

Say No To Foam

I'm just as guilty as the next person when it comes to using Styrofoam to package to-go boxes. I frequently am unable to finish a restaurant meal, and most places will bring you one of these boxes to take the rest home.

One of my favorite fast food restaurants (Chick-fil-a) uses Styrofoam cups for fountain drinks. I've heard some people rave about the benefits of these cups keeping drinks cold/hot longer and absorbing condensation.

But Styrofoam contains toxic chemicals that can be absorbed by food (especially when microwaved!). Not only that, it is made with petroleum which is a major polluter. This oil based product takes at least 500 years to biodegrade!

Glass and plastic bottles are also terrible in terms of amount of time to break down, but at least they can be recycled.

So what can we do about it?

• When I go to Chick-fil-a, I take my own reusable water bottle (cause I really don't need to drink soda anyway). If you order your meal without a drink, you do save that money.
• Pay attention to which restaurants use paper products rather than Styrofoam for to-go boxes. And try to choose these if you know you're going to have leftovers.
• If you know a restaurant uses Styrofoam, plan ahead. Take a friend and share a meal. Good company and no waste!

Further Reading: Polystyrene Foam Report

I don't know about you, but I seem to collect stacks and stacks of paper. Receipts, junk mail, grocery lists, credit card bills.

Clutter is frustrating, so why not try to go as paperless as possible?

This article offers a few tips. Though mainly aimed at small businesses, some of this advice can be applied to a home office.

If you choose to store important data in digital form, I recommend a secure site online. That way if anything ever happened to your personal computer, the information would not be lost.

It's important to sort through the piles and figure out what you actually need to keep — maybe for tax purposes. That receipt from Wendy's? Not useful in any way. But before tossing it, check to see if there's personal information that needs to be shredded.

If possible, recycle useless paper.

To cut down the amount of paper, most credit cards and utility services offer paperless bill options. I take full advantage of these — it's so much easier to receive the bill via email and go directly online to pay it. No stamps, no envelopes, no checks.

Hassle free and saving trees. Now if only it were less painful to pay those bills...

Tip: Gimme 5

Because so many places do not accept No. 5 plastics for recycling, Whole Foods and Preserve implemented a program called Gimme 5. Many of the stores around the country now have drop-off bins where you can take these difficult items.

Once your used packaging is gone, Preserve turns them into household products, such as toothbrushes and razors, sold at a stores near you! How cool is that?

It's great to have a place working for a program like this. And it benefits Whole Foods too by getting us in the stores. I know anytime I've been to Whole Foods, Earth Fare and Trader Joe's, I always get distracted and end up buying more than I intend. I love that these stores promote organic foods and eco-friendly products, but as someone on a limited budget, I hate the higher prices that come with them.

If you can resist making extra purchases (or even if you can't), it's great to be able to find a local drop-off point.

Incentives for Recycling

As long as I can remember, stores such as Publix and Walmart have had bins near the front door for returning plastic shopping bags for recycling. Target has taken it a step further, with many locations implementing more complete in-store recycling stations. The one closest to my apartment has separate receptacles for plastic shopping bags, glass/plastic/aluminum and one for used electronics.

I had already been drinking the Target Kool-Aid, but now I keep a full pitcher on hand cause I'm hooked.

A more complete listing of Target's "Go Green" initiatives can be found here. I know these large box stores get a bad rap (and with good reason, since they generally drain surrounding resources), but I realize they aren't going anywhere. They're just too freakin' convenient!

A 5¢ discount every time you use a reusable bag. A $1 credit toward a reusable bad for turning in five plastic bags (through a partnership with TerraCycle). Gift cards for trading in old electronics (through a partnership with Next-Worth). Plus on Earth Day last week, stores gave out free reusable bags — I got mine!

But at least this particular chain is taking some major steps to look out for the environment. Walmart is coming around too: stores around the country are carrying TerraCycle products thru Thursday, when the experimental program concludes. (Maybe I missed it, but Walmart didn't seem to do nearly enough advertising since I just found out about it while researching for this post.)

Likely, these are places you already shop so it doesn't require too much effort to take in recyclables — especially when there's a reward involved.

Tip: Earth911

Not too long ago, I discovered the website Earth911. Since not all of us have the luxury of curbside collection services, it's a great resource for finding local recycling centers and drop-off points for a variety of materials.

Whether you're looking to get started recycling, have recently moved to a new place or are traveling, you can find a convenient place to dispose of your recyclables.

A couple months ago, I was on vacation with some friends in Florida. I convinced them to set aside their beer bottles and cans, and on the last day I looked up the nearest bin. My boyfriend and I dropped off a bunch of bags — without even leaving the island — that otherwise would have ended up in the trash.