My wife and I are passionate recyclers. I'm not looking for a pat on the back or anything, it's just something we both feel is important for the environment
and provides a little 'peace of mind'. For most people, recycling is a fairly simple process--wash recycleable item. Put it in a recycle bin. Place by the curb for pickup. In our case, it's a little trickier than that.
As I've mention in prior posts, I live in a fairly rural area. "The Country", as it were. There is no curbside recycling program in our township so we're forced to collect our cardboard, plastic and glass items and then drive them to the recycling center about 12-miles away. And, collect we do. The local recycling center is only open on the third Thursday of each month and it costs $3 per load. Since my wife is an accountant, she makes sure we're getting our money's worth. This means we don't take a trip to the center until my car is 'filled to the brim' with materials. Luckily, we have a very large garage, so storage of these items is fairly easy. A trip into our garage is like entering a recycling museum. Milk cartons from two months ago adorn one side of the wall. Cereal, pasta and cracker boxes line another. Glass items sit inside cardboard boxes along yet another wall. It's not a perfect system, but it works. I have found that no matter how thoroughly you wash out a milk carton, the milk 'smell' still lingers inside. After two months, our garage starts smelling like a cheesecake. When we finally collect enough 'stuff' to make a trip into town worthwhile, the filling of the car begins. The trunk is stuffed to capacity. The passenger seat usually holds a couple boxes. My poor son is forced to climb over papers and boxes to reach his car seat.
I just made the bi-monthly trek to the center yesterday. It's an out-of-the-way 'yard' located in an industrial area. You know you're getting close when you hit the washboard road leading to the center. Apparently, the operators are more concerne with saving the earth than saving the suspension on my car. But, I digress....
Once inside the caged property, you're greeted by a lovely old lady who magically appears from a tin shack to accept your $3. This woman is always smiling, rain or shine, hot or cold. She's obviously a volunteer and truly enjoys getting out once a month and meeting people. After paying, you must pull around to where other volunteers are busy removing items from car trunks, pickup truck beds and the sides of vans. The last time I was there, it was about 34 degrees and was pouring rain. These folks were decked-out in rain gear, long johns and mittens and were still cordial as can be! It's a pleasure, really. They quickly remove your items, ask if you want the boxes back and send you on your way. Meantime--dozens of others are separating glass bottles and #1 and #5 plastics for placement in required bins. Unfortunately, things didn't go so smoothly for me and the boy. The one rule at the recycling center is you MUST separate all numbered plastics (i.e, #1-#7) into individual boxes. In other words---they can't be all jumbled together. Apparently I was a bit sloppy this time around because I was scolded by a volunteer about my inability to do this. It wasn't laziness, mind you. It was because we collected so much stuff this time around, it was nearly impossible to keep it all organized. She wasn't angry. Just a little annoyed. She informed me that I HAVE to separate the plastics beforehand so they don't have to do it at the center. "The line of cars would be down the street if everyone did what you're doing today!!!". I apologized, thanked her for the information, and slinked out of there with my tail between my legs. I felt bad. These fine folks aren't getting paid to do this and the last thing I want to do is make it MORE difficult for them. I vowed to get it right the next time.
So, you see, recycling isn't always as easy as it's made out to be.
The following was taken from the website "Earth 911". Reduction is the key in the Three R's (reduce, reuse, recycle).....
One of the easiest ways to be a good environmental citizen is to reduce, or cut back, in key areas of your life. Three of the most important resources you can reduce your consumption of are:
Here’s a quick breakdown of how reducing affects these areas:
- Energy—Energy is generated and consumed with most activities, and it often results in releasing carbon into the environment. In addition, there is a finite amount of energy available from traditional (non-renewable) methods such as coal and oil. Developing alternative, renewable energies (such as solar, wind and geothermal) helps to reduce our dependence on non-renewable resources to power our lives.
- Water—Water covers 71 percent of the Earth’s surface, but relatively little is suitable for consumption. In many parts of the world, drinkable water is in very short supply. Every time a drop of water goes down the drain, it becomes unsuitable for consumption unless properly treated.
- Solid Waste—There is only so much room available for solid waste disposal, and because landfills are so tightly packed, it takes a great deal of time for material to decompose. The easiest way to reduce solid waste is to reduce your consumption of daily products. Be cautious of what you buy, and whether anything you are going to put in a trash can really belongs there.
Communities as well as individuals are always looking for new ways to address the concern of reduction in the above areas. The most common form is found in household waste and recycling. For example, a new type of waste reduction program is being explored known as a Pay-as-You-Throw (PAYT) trash collection program. Residents will pay a fee per bag of garbage instead of a lump sum for the service. In turn, the curbside recycling program component is offered at no charge or a reduced fee.
The ideal outcome of PAYT is that residents will start recycling more in an effort to save money. According to the EPA, about 75 percent of what is found in the average garbage can is recyclable, so a PAYT program rewards people who choose alternative forms of disposal for this content, such as curbside recycling or composting.
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