Amanda Bollman Milwaukee, WI, United States

4.6 out of 5
406 global ratings
Recycles - Do you recycle paper, plastic, glass, cardboard, tin and aluminum ... and do you bring materials such as compact fluorescent lighting, electronics, batteries, cell phones, paint and household hazardous waste to authorized hazardous waste facilities?

     

    RECYCLE

     

    HOW:  Use the new national standardized labels on your recycling bins to: 1) reduce confusion at the bin, 2) increase your capture rates, 3) reduce the contamination entering the recycling stream, and 4) to reduce your expenses.  

     

     

    To learn where to dispose of hazardous materials, such as paint, chemicals, medicine, electronics, CFLs, batteries, etc. click here.

     

    WHY:    According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (Sept 2010) less than 35% of households and less than 10% of businesses recycle.  When the number of people recycling reaches 75%, it will be the equivalent of removing 50 million cars from the road in the United States each year, it will generate 1.5 million new jobs and it will reduce U.S. carbon emissions by 276 million metric tons by 2030.  And recycling limits additional use of natural resources therefore preserving our water, trees, soil and energy.   Nearly every person, family and business can recycle.  Recycling is one of the most important and visible actions we can do for the environment.  

     

    FINANCIAL BENEFITS OF RECYCLING:   Recycling can reduce the frequency and the volume of garbage hauling therefore reducing the the landfill taxes that each home owner and business pays.  Recycling incurs no taxes and the costs of both recycling and hauling combined is often measurably less than  garbage services without recycling.  National and global studies (Gallup, Good Purpose, Tandberg) reveal more than 85% of consumers state they will switch companies or products to support ones that are more environmentally and socially responsible, if given the opportunity.  Since 'green' is a market share issue, recycling is a great way to publicly & visually demonstrate that your organization cares. Use the standardized labels on your recycling bins to capture the most amount of materials to reduce your landfill related expenses.  Last but not least, Cone Research and others (2007), found that 92% of employees surveyed have an increased positive image of the company they work for when it practices environmentally and socially responsible initiatives such as recycling.  Improved employee relations has been found to decrease employee turnover.  Another bottom-line measurement.

     

    RECYCLING CASE STUDY:   Waste reduction agencies and consultants have helped many small and large businesses reduce their waste expenses by 35% or more each month.  Additionally for food related industries, there are grease/oil, organic and food waste recycling service providers that will sometimes pay for a company's food related waste or provide additional hauling savings.  Once a company has made the decision to recycle, they often have a greater awareness of their overall waste stream and find opportunities to reduce over-usage and unnecessary waste, which in turn reduces front-end expenses. 


I'm a crazy about recycling but I am working really hard on the "reduce" portion of the "reduce, reuse, recycle" equation so that there is less to recycle. I've been known to pull cans and bottles out of public trash bins and take them home to recycle. I'm also lucky enough to have a friend who works for a company that recycles electronics, shoes and batteries so it is really easy for me to dispose of those items properly as well.