Boats everywhere are being pulled out of storage, unwrapped, and set back into the water. Unwrapped? Yes. For those of you who are not boaters, shrink wrap goes way beyond the kitchen- it is used to keep stored boats in good condition. But what happens to all this shrink wrap after it has been used? (more…)

April 22, 2010 marked the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. By attending the 2010 New York City Earth Day event, it was obvious we have come a long way since Earth Day’s beginnings as a protest to raise environmental awareness.

Earth Day NYC 2010

Americans dispose of billions upon billions of paper, plastic, and foam cups. This year over 58 billion paper cups and 25 billion polystyrene foam cups will pass through our hands and end up in landfills. While the United States is still the world’s largest culprit of disposable cup waste, growing nations like China and India are fast catching up. It’s a cup carrying, cup dumping world! (more…)

Recycle your used “Zip Lock” plastic storage bags. Cut-off all hard components (zippers etc.) and collect zipper-less bags in a plastic shopping bag. Recycle the shopping bag and its contents at your local retailer’s plastic bag recycling station. Help keep more LDPE (#4) plastic out of our landfills.

Just Zip It. Zipper-type plastic storage bags have hundreds of uses and are fast becoming the quintessential storage solution for households and businesses. Foods, electronic parts, garden soils, and even crime scene evidence end up packaged in these convenient, storage bags. Although millions of these bags are used daily, recycling used zipper-type plastic bags is not so easy. (more…)

Valentine’s Day is a festival of cards, candy, and flowers. During this holiday, 65% of all US households will exchange greeting cards, 38% will give or receive candy, and 32% will turn to flowers to say, “Will you be my Valentine?” (more…)

Children around the world delight in the wonder that toys bring to their lives. Who can’t remember their favorite childhood toy? I suppose it is this nostalgic wonder that makes gifting a toy so heartfelt. During the holiday season toys abound. But where do many toys end up after the novelty wears off? Are you visualizing toys strewn throughout the house, stashed in the garage, or stuffed under the car seat along with remnants of birthdays and shopping trips past? Actually, within 3 months of receiving a toy, 41% of toys are broken and most end up in the trash. Ending up in the trash, means ending up in a landfill! (more…)

Getting a school recycling program off the ground seems like an easy task, but all sorts of issues can arise. To help make your effort seamlessly implementable and successful, I’ve put together a few pointers (or at least a few questions you can hash over) before you start. (more…)

Plastic as a Recycling Foundation

Is the time right for MRF World to take plastics more seriously? Should plastics be at the forefront of curbside recycling? Just as co-mingling of recyclables has made collection at curbside easier, the co-mingling of information on recovered materials may provide some answers. Trust me. We are not mixing apples and oranges; the markets do share some interesting parallels. (more…)

If your municipality does not offer curbside pick up for lesser recycled plastics, like PP(#5) or PS(#6), phone the depot’s office and ask where you can recycle them. Many times the town right next to yours accepts different recyclables. If you live in a city, chances are the recycling office can tell you where such plastics may be publicly collected.