BCU Recycles.....Do U?

While we are working towards keeping ourselves healthy and strong, let's do the same for our Mother Earth.  Instead of bottled water, ask Robyn for a Boot Camp U re-usable water bottle!  

“I Recycle” is the theme of Keep America Beautiful’s 2010 America Recycles Day (ARD), which takes place on November 15.

Millions of Americans have pledged to increase their recycling habits at home and at work over the 13-year history of ARD, a nationally-recognized initiative dedicated to encouraging people to recycle more at home, at work, and on the go. More than a celebration, America Recycles Day is the only nationally recognized day dedicated to the promotion of recycling in the United States. It’s one day to inform and educate, one day to get our neighbors, friends and community leaders excited about what can be accomplished when we all work together, one day to make recycling bigger and better 365 days a year.

Here are 10 ways you can take action this year:

1. Know your local recycling system. Different communities have different standards for what can be recycled and how to do it. Visit Earth911.com and enter your zip code for your local information and resources.
2. Plastic recycling: it’s all in the numbers. Look for the recycling symbol on plastic packaging or containers. #1 and #2 plastics should be accepted by almost every recycler. Some communities require that your plastic bottles have a “neck,” so know your local rules (see #1).
3. Can it! Metals are among the most valuable materials in the waste stream. Aluminum and steel cans are always welcomed by recyclers, and most metals can be recycled infinitely with no loss of quality.
4. Make recycling easy on the road. Keep two bags in your car or truck to contain your trash – one bag for garbage, and one for recyclables. Pre-sorting makes it easier to transfer your recyclables to the proper container once you’ve reached your destination.
5. Answer the call to recycle your wireless phone! Hundreds of millions of out-of-service phones are waiting to be reused or recycled. Do you have one or more in your home? Find a local charity with a phone recycling program, or visit Earth911.com to find recyclers near you.
6. Look beyond the daily paper. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, paper and cardboard are America’s most-recycled materials by weight. In addition to newspaper recycling, most communities will accept corrugated cardboard, and some will even accept junk mail, catalogues and phone books.
7. Plug in to E-cycling. We live in an electronic age and that’s creating a lot of electronic waste. Never throw old computers, monitors, TVs, printers, or other electronics in the landfill. Instead, donate them to a local charity for reuse, or find out about your local e-cycling programs.
8. Improve your community with a cleanup event. Clean communities are better places for everyone to live, work, shop and play. Join or organize a local cleanup event, and be sure to sort the recyclables you pick up. You’ll be amazed at what a difference a little effort can make.
9. Teach your children well. Do your part to help create the next generation of environmental stewards. Involve your kids in recycling and make it fun. Even preschoolers can help with sorting recyclables, and they’ll learn a lot about the world around them. Someday, they may even help with taking out the trash!
10. Don’t forget about “Reduce” and “Reuse.” Reducing the amount of trash we throw away, and reusing products BEFORE you throw them out or recycle them, creates the least impact on the planet and our resources. Consider how you can add “reuse” to products before they re-enter the waste stream.

How can you get involved in America Recycles Day? Visit americarecyclesday.org to find an event near you.

America Recycles Day – http://www.kab.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ARD_Links_and_Resources