Recycling is good, mmmmkay.

Posted By Kelly Orange on September 5, 2009

We are so excited to have partnered with Recon Recycling for Fruit of the Soul 2009! Do you have to consciously think about recycling or do you even need to think about it anymore? We hope that it will be something that everyone just does, not because they have to, not because there is a law telling you to, not because it’s the cool thing, but because it’s second nature. Wouldn’t it be nice to have 9 lives like a cat? You can at least do that for all your plastic, glass, paper & appliances. I mean think about all they’ve done for you… I’m a cheeseball. Don’t laugh. I’m being serious here.

You’ll find some more information that the lovely people over at Recon Recycling provided me with & if you’re looking for a customized recycling program give them a call at 619.955.2158.

RECYCLING INITIATIVE:

Environmental problems are increasingly becoming an important factor when making decisions regarding your business and living space. From small restaurants to large corporations, adopting sustainable practices is beneficial to our environment and the bottom line. Our waste reduction and recycling programs will reduce your waste disposal costs and enable you to make a positive impact on our environment.

Businesses, restaurants, apartment/condo complexes, and special events produce an incredible amount of waste, much of which is recyclable. With the passing of the City of San Diego Recycling Ordinance requiring all businesses and multi-family dwellings to recycle, it is imperative to implement a recycling program for your facility as well as continually optimize your waste stream for cost savings.

Why Recycle?

•It’s the law. The passing of the City of San Diego Recycling Ordinance has required recycling at all residential and commercial facilities by January 1, 2010. Are you in compliance or looking to optimize your program?

•Recycling saves money. Implementing a recycling program can significantly lower trash bills by reducing trash pick-ups and the fees associated.

•Recycling helps extend the life of the Miramar Landfill. Approximately 2/3 of all waste entering the Landfill is recyclable. Instead of taking up precious landfill space, recyclable materials can be used for new products.

•With the the Landfill forecasted to be filled to capacity and closed in 2017, the City of San Diego will have to find alternative disposal options. This could significantly raise the cost of landfill disposal for everyone in San Diego.

Waste Not, Want Not:

•Americans use 85 million tons of paper a year; that’s about 680 pounds per person.

•Americans throw away 25 billion styrofoam coffee cups every year. 500 years from now the styrofoam container your takeout came in last night will be sitting in a landfill.

•A modern glass bottle would take more than 4000 years to decompose, however can be recycled infinitely.

•Half of all trash dumped is recyclable!

•Plastic bags and other plastic garbage thrown into the ocean kill as many as 1 million sea creatures every year!

•Americans throw away 44 million newspapers everyday. That’s the same as dumping 500,000 trees into landfills each week.

Recycling - A look at the numbers:

•Aluminum

•A used aluminum can is recycled and back on the grocery shelf as a new can, in as little as 60 days. That’s closed loop recycling at its finest!

•Aluminum can recycling saves 95% of the energy needed to make aluminum from bauxite ore.

•Glass

•Glass never wears out — it can be recycled an infinite amount of times.

•The energy saved from recycling one glass bottle can run a 100-watt light bulb for four hours. It also causes 20% less air pollution and 50% less water pollution than when a new bottle is made from raw materials.

•Plastic

•Recycling plastic saves twice as much energy as burning it in an incinerator.

•By recycling every plastic bottle in the nation, approximately two billion tons of plastic would be diverted from landfills.

•Paper

•Each ton (2000 pounds) of recycled paper can save 17 trees, 380 gallons of oil, three cubic yards of landfill space, 4000 kilowatts of energy, and 7000 gallons of water. This represents a 64% energy savings, a 58% water savings, and 60 pounds less of air pollution!