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A great list of 21 things you didn’t know you can recycle has just been published in Coop America Quarterly, a Journal on Sustainability.
Are you also feeling overwhelmed by the amount of household waste that seems to have no-where to go?
Here is a quick summary of their list of how to recycle some seemingly unrecyclables:
1. Appliances:
If working: http://www.goodwill.org
If not working: http://www.recycle-steel.org
2. Batteries:
http://www.batteryrecycling.com
3. Cardboard boxes:
Local nonprofits
Men’s or women’s shelters
http://www.Freecycle.org listserv
http://www.Craigslist.org
UsedCardboardBoxes.com, if you supply 100+ boxes/mth.
4. CDs/DVDs/Game Disks:
http://www.auraltech.com
5. Clothes:
General: Goodwill & Shelters
Wearable women’s business clothing: http://www.dressforsuccess.org.
Unwearable clothes and towels: local animal boarding and shelter facilities, for pet bedding.
Hold a clothes swap at your office, school, faith congregation or community center.
Swap clothes with friends and colleagues, and
save money on a new fall wardrobe and back-to-school clothes.
6. Compact fluorescent bulbs:
http://www.ikea.com
7. Compostable bio-plastics:
http://www.findacomposter.com
8. Computers and electronics:
http://www.ban.org/pledge/Locations.html
9. Exercise videos: Swap at
http://www.videofitness.com
10. Eyeglasses:
Lion’s Club
Eye care chains
Lenses are reground and given to people in need.
11. Foam packing:
Your local pack-and-ship store will likely accept foam peanuts for reuse. Or, call the Plastic Loose Fill Producers Council to find a drop-off site: 800/828-2214. For places to drop off foam blocks for recycling, contact the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers, 410/451-8340, www.epspackaging.org/info.html
12. Ink/toner cartridges:
http://www.recycleplace.com
Pays $1/each.
13. Miscellaneous:
Give your unwanted items to people who can use them:
http://www.Freecycle.org
http://www.Craigslist.org or try giving them away at
http://www.Throwplace.com
http://www.iReuse.com (will help you find a recycler or user)
14. Used Motor Oil:
http://www.recycleoil.org
15. Phones:
Cell phones: http://www.collectivegood.com (for developing countries), or
http://www.donateaphone.com (for domestic violence victims).
Home phones: http://www.reclamere.com
16. Sports equipment:
Resell or trade it:
http://www.playitagainsports.com
17. “Technotrash” (iPods, MP3 players, cell phones and chargers, digital cameras, PDAs, palm pilots, and more):
Use Project KOPEG to recycle and to help you raise funds for your organization.
CDs, jewel cases, DVDs, audio and video tapes, pagers, rechargeable and single-use batteries, PDAs, and ink/toner cartridges: http://www.greendisk.com
18. Tennis shoes:
Unwearables: http://www.nikereuseashoe.com for playground and athletic flooring.
Still wearables: http://www.oneworldrunning.com for athletes in need in Africa, Latin America and Haiti.
19. Toothbrushes and razors:
http://www.recycline.com
Buy a recycled plastic toothbrush or razor from Recycline (made from used Stonyfield Farms’ yogurt cups), and the company will take it back to be recycled again into plastic lumber.
20. Tyvek envelopes:
< 25: Send to Shirley Cimburke, Tyvek Recycling Specialist, 5401 Jefferson Davis Hwy., Spot 197, Room 231, Richmond, VA 23234. Quantities larger than 25, call 866/33-TYVEK.
21. Stuff you just can’t recycle:
When practical, send such items back to the manufacturer and tell them they need to manufacture products that close the waste loop responsibly.
It is about time we produce less rather than more garbage: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.
For more information, visit Coop America Quarterly’s website.
