recycle in US

[purrfectpear]

I work for a very, very large corporation with divisions in many states. In WA they recycle like mad. In CA they said they did a study and it cost more to recycle and process the recyling than any potential savings. Personally I''m not too concerned with how many polyesters died to create a Diet Mt. Dew bottle. I do believe in paper recycling because I believe it is more effective and saves trees.

My condo is a 12 story hirise. We do not recycle but we have homeless and indigent people who do that for us on a daily basis (dumpster diving). One of them got so creative they "recycled" one of our large (original to 1922) brass plaques.

 

[wishful]

I live in San Diego and moved from sort of a suburb town to the actual downtown area. Both had recycling bins that were picked up on trash day but when I was up in the suburb we had two small bins to seperate the recycleable matertial. One for paper and one for plasic/glass.
Now ours downtown is just one big bin. But a seperate truck comes to pick it up so I hope that it''s actually getting recycled!

and not just dumped in the same place as the regular trash!

We also bought a bunch of the new reusable grocery bags so we don''t have as much plastic.
Even if we make an impromptu run to the store and we forget to bring the bags, we just buy another.

 

[wishful]

Also, even though this is a tiny bit off topic, I buy this awesome line of environmentally aware cleaning products. I love them!
Seems like a lot of PSers are into this sort of thing so I''ll post it.

http://methodhome.com/

Great stuff, non toxic, the glass cleaner smells like mint....what more can you ask for!

 

[lovegem]

Thank you ladies for posting resources and ways to recycle. Ever since I've found out that there isn't any recycling in our building I have not drunk any soft drinks or bottled drinks. I still consume OJ, apple cider, and milk that come in bulk, but soft drink becomes a luxury. It may be good for me to stop drinking those anyway.

I do plan to take some of the paper recyclables back to work and dump it there (as soon as I find out where the blue bins are and if there is any). We don't have a car here in Philly. So it would be impossible to save up all the recyclable and drive it to the dumpster.

I never thought I would be this concerned about recycling. Back in Toronto, recycles bins are plenty on our street corners, recycle pickups every week for biodegradable at home, then a huge big bin for other recycle stuffs. If you really recycle, there isn't much garbage left. All apartment buildings have huge recycling bins. I guess I am just a little disappointed that a big city like Philly is so behind in recycling.

 

[WishfulThinking]

Date: 8/7/2008 7:47:59 PM
Author: wishful
Also, even though this is a tiny bit off topic, I buy this awesome line of environmentally aware cleaning products. I love them!

Seems like a lot of PSers are into this sort of thing so I''ll post it.


http://methodhome.com/


Great stuff, non toxic, the glass cleaner smells like mint....what more can you ask for!

Those are awesome, thanks for posting them! My mom has that brand of soap in the bathroom. I never knew it was enviro-friendly, but knowing my mom and her cleaning products/lightbulbs I should have guessed it was. She is really into stuff like this, and I love it! That is where I got my conservation gene from.

I can''t remember the name of the cleaning stuff she uses, but it''s enviro-friendly and smells yummy. I will post it if I get a chance to ask her soon.

 

[sumbride]

Date: 8/7/2008 4:38:18 PM
Author: phoenixgirl
On a side note, it''s fun to walk around the city in an area waiting for recycling pick up. It''s such a snap shot into people''s lives--this person drinks sparkling water like it''s going out of style, that person had champagne last night (I wonder what the occasion was?), this person eats Kashi cereal, that person has little kids what with the diaper boxes and baby food, etc.

I''m a little concerned that our pickup crew think we''re alcoholics! We''re the only house on our block with a patio instead of a parking pad (among our friends) so all the impromptu parties end up at our house, and our recycle bin is full to the brim with beer bottles and cans and vodka and wine bottles. It''s not all us, I swear! I''m getting a little insecure about it actually.

 

[tenfour]

Date: 8/7/2008 7:47:59 PM
Author: wishful
Also, even though this is a tiny bit off topic, I buy this awesome line of environmentally aware cleaning products. I love them!

Seems like a lot of PSers are into this sort of thing so I''ll post it.


http://methodhome.com/


Great stuff, non toxic, the glass cleaner smells like mint....what more can you ask for!

i use the lavender dish soap all the time. loooove the stuff!!

 

[tenfour]

i should also add about the recycling program in my region.

there is a bin for organics (all food, paper, and dog poop), a bin for plastics and cans, a bin for cardboard, and a bin for newspaper. there is also regular garbage pickup, but almost everything can be recycled in some way.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Date: 8/7/2008 6:18:53 PM
Author: claudinam

Date: 8/7/2008 11:31:59 AM
Author: NewEnglandLady
I have to say that in every office I''ve ever worked in, they have the blue recycling bins...but then the cleaning service always just throws them in the same trashcan as all the other trash, haha. I am not pro-recycling, so I don''t care, but I don''t get the point of making people think they are recycling.

I saw this on the T the other day, too. They have these bins for newspaper that are supposed to be for recycling, but when a janitor comes by to put a new bag in the bins, he just throws the old bag in the regular trash! What''s the point?

Why, NEL? Is it just something you don''t believe in/don''t see the benefits? I''m curious.

They used to do that in my office back in Great Neck (New York). We would take the time to put the recyclable stuff in the bins, but the cleaning people would just throw it out into the garbage can...

For me, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. Still, I know many are very much pro-recylcing and take the time/effort to sort through their recyclables, so I don''t think it''s fair for a company to make their employers believe they are recycling when in fact they aren''t.