Christmas Tree Recycling

Colorado Recycles has compiled a Christmas tree recycling guide at recycleyourchristmastree.com.

Aurora will be recycling Christmas trees Dec. 26 through Jan. 12 in the following locations: Del Mar Park, 6th and Peoria in the west parking lot; Olympic Park, 15501 E. Yale Ave.; Murphy Creek Golf Course, 1700 S. Old Tom Morris Road; and Saddle Rock Golf Course, 21705 E. Arapahoe Road.

For more cities and recycling locations, see the Denver Post article here.

Trash to Trees at the Inverness Hotel

Trash to Trees is a tree decorating contest at the Inverness Hotel that challenges students to use recycled or re-purposed items to decorate a holiday tree. It is aimed bring awareness to the importance of recycling during the holidays using a creative and educational approach targeted at school age children.. The trees are on display at the Inverness from December 5-14.

The Trash to Trees tree challenge was open to Arapahoe, Douglas County and Denver county 4th - 8th graders only. Each participating school was challenged to decorate a 5-foot tree using recycled or re-purposed items only. They selected a ‘theme’ to guide their decorations and a list of all the recycled items they used. Beyond those rules, students were encouraged to get creative!

The trees will be on display beginning Dec. 5 – Dec. 14 in the main lobby and along the main entrance hallways at The Inverness Hotel located at 200 Inverness Drive West, Englewood. The Inverness Hotel will invite the community to stop by the hotel Dec. 5 – Dec. 14 to cast their vote and enjoy complimentary cocoa and cookies. There will a total of 10 judging categories, such as Most Recycled Items Used; Best Tree Top Decoration; Most Original Decorating Theme; etc. The Inverness Hotel will tally the votes on Dec. 14 and list the winners on their Web site by Dec. 15.

Curbside composting in Denver

City recycling officials are stunned at the initial success of their curbside composting program, as volunteers for the pilot put 31 pounds of organics a week into their green bins instead of the expected 18 to 22.

Denver launched curbside composting bins in September for 3,000 homes in about a dozen selected neighborhoods. The green bins were picked up every week until the end of the fall leaf season and are now every other week, just like the purple recycling containers.
The organic waste — yard debris, food waste, vegetable greens, wet coffee filters, etc. — goes to a private composting facility for self-baking into garden soil. If the $215,000 state startup grant is successful, recycling officials will ask Denver to expand curbside composting throughout the city.

Read the article from the Denver Post....

Read more about Denver's composting program...

Holiday Ideas

Look for cards that contain recycled content or are actually recycled materials, make your own cards from scrap paper, or even use old cards as gift tags or something else creative!

Wrap boxes in magazine pages, the funny pages, or old maps. Think about using reusable containers like tins, baskets and boxes. If you do buy wrapping paper, look for recycled paper and reuse.

Give an environmentally-smart gift, such as a refillable thermos, a canvas tote bag, items made from recycled materials, homemade gifts, plants, concert/movies tickets, dinner out, candles, soap, seeds for next year’s garden, national parks pass, membership to the botanic gardens/zoo/aquarium.

Take your own tote bag shopping to avoid using a lot of plastic bags on just a few items.

Make your own ornaments from found objects, or use edible/compostable items.

Consider decorating with LED lights, which are up to 90 percent more efficient than the traditional incandescent. These newer bulbs are sturdy, last up to 100,000 hours (or 20 years) and barely warm up, eliminating fire concerns.

Use timers to limit light displays to no more than six evening hours a day. Leaving lights on 24 hours a day will quadruple your energy costs – and create four times the pollution.

Donate your unneeded clothes/jackets to a shelter for the needy.

Share your ideas for being more green this holiday season!

60 Minutes Exposes Toxic E-waste

60 Minutes corresondent Scott Pelley and crew went to China to investigate illegal smuggling of "E-waste (electronic waste)." Pelley's investigation will be broadcast this Sunday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.

Blurbs from the article posted on cbsnews.com:

60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley and crew got roughed up at a Chinese dump while working on a story on toxic electronic waste.

E-waste workers in Guiyu, China, where Pelley's team videotaped, put up with the dangerous conditions for the $8 a day the job pays.

"We throw out about 130,000 computers every day in the United States...we throw out over 100 million cell phones every year," says Hershkowitz. A great deal of this American e-waste winds up in places like Guiyu. In fact, even some companies promising to recycle it safely will illegally export it, as 60 Minutes reveals.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/11/06/60minutes/main4579229.shtml

Wait...before you recycle that...

What YOU can do before you recycle your paper!

REDUCE!

• Use email, voicemail and bulletin boards to circulate branch or district-wide messages.
• Save and proof documents electronically rather than printing a hard copy.
• Think before you print (do you need to print every email...)!

REUSE!

• Use both sides of the paper and print double-sided in copiers/printers.
• Make scratch paper from otherwise waste paper.
• Reuse envelopes or use two-way envelopes.
• Use manila folders for multiple projects.
• Reuse cardboard boxes for storage or shipping.
• Use paper for projects, wrapping gifts, etc!

What other ideas do you have for REDUCING and REUSING before RECYCLING?

Stores that recycle your stuff!

Stores that recycle your stuff
By Lori Bongiorno

Wondering what to do with all the broken, used up, and unwanted stuff accumulating in your home? In some cases, you can take it back to a store. A growing number of retailers are offering programs that make it easy for you to responsibly recycle castaways. So, next time you go shopping consider packing more than just your reusable shopping bags. Here's a sampling of some national programs.

Aveda collects water, soda, detergent, and shampoo plastic bottle caps at its retail stores and some of its salons. Caps are recycled and used to make new Aveda packaging.

Best Buy takes cell phones, rechargeable batteries, and ink jet cartridges at all its U.S. stores. You can learn about its weekend recycling events and other programs at the company's website.
Home Depot has a recycling program for compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs), cell phones, and rechargeable batteries available at all of its stores in the continental U.S. and Canada.

Ikea takes plastic bags, CFLs, and batteries at its 35 U.S. stores.

Office Depot will give you a $3 coupon for every ink or toner cartridge you bring in. Drop off old cell phones and rechargeable batteries for free. For other tech trash, Office Depot sells Tech Recycling boxes (for $5, $10, or $15 depending on size) that you can fill with an unlimited amount of electronics and hand back. Check out its website for more details and other recycling programs.

Radio Shack accepts old cell phones and rechargeable batteries. They also have an online program that's worth looking at.

Staples offers free recycling for smaller electronics (like cell phones, PDAs, and rechargeable batteries) and computer peripherals (such as mice, key boards, and computer speakers). Bring in your old computer, printer, or other office technology and pay a $10 fee for recycling. You'll also get $3 in Staples Rewards when you recycle HP, Lexmark or Dell ink and toner cartridges. Find your nearest store here.

The UPS Store and Mail Boxes Etc. accept clean packaging peanuts for reuse at many of their locations. Each franchise is individually owned so you should call your local store before making the trip. Click on these links to find your closest options: The UPS Store and Mail Boxes Etc.

Wal-Mart takes plastic bags, used car batteries, motor oil, and oil filters at all of its locations.

Whole Foods Market has different programs in each of its stores so find out the details about your local market. Here's a small sampling of what you can potentially unload: Crocs, batteries, cell phones, inkjet cartridges, CFLs, plastic grocery bags, light plastics (six pack holders, dry cleaning, bags, newspaper bags, etc.), and wine corks (in Northern California starting in November).

Try searching Earth 911's extensive database for other local options.