how to recycle anything, anywhere!
honestly… i hate picking up other people’s crap. but i am compelled to stop – totally embarrassed, mind you – and rescue perfectly good stuff from the trash on a regular basis. sometimes i merely carry it in my car from the originating driveway to the thrift shop’s door step. but honestly, most of the time my sloth or shame gets the better of me… and off to the landfill it goes. (the glasses in this photo were all rescued from various bins.) it’s sickening what we throw out! last month, i happened across the most exquisite china cabinet in NYC. it was 9pm on a sunday night and garbage pick up was the following morning. that cabinet would have cost $1000 easy in an antique shop. to make matters worse, it was starting to rain. i almost started crying myself. what is wrong with people? it would have been so easy to find that beautiful object a loving home. perhaps it is that they are unaware that there are actually options than to simply throw it away? i’ve compiled a list to refer to the next time i wanna unload some crap. i’ll keep it posted permanently… feel free to peruse the next time you’re clearing your clutter!
GWEN’S DIRECTORY OF CRAP UNLOADING SOURCES
if you take the time to look, you will likely find a nearby thrift shop. or, throw an ad up on CRAIGS LIST in the free section. i’ve never been disappointed… i always find a taker. no matter how awful i thought my garbage was- someone always wanted it. FREECYCLE, THROWPLACE and IREUSE are also resources for unloading stuff. alternatively, place an ad on CRAIGS LIST announcing the time you will leave it at a certain location (end of your driveway), and watch it disappear! it helps if you put a free sign on the stuff too, as it makes people feel less like driveway burglars!
if you have bedding, towels, rags, unused pet prescriptions and pet products, newspaper, bleach, ect… bring them to your local animal shelter. they are always desperate for supplies.
recycle INK CARTRIDGES at PETSMART to benefit homeless animals. STAPLES will also take back laser and ink jet cartridges.
pay someone to unload your crap at 1-800-GOT-JUNK? they donate and recycle everything they can.
Your local pack-and-ship store will likely accept FOAM PEANUTS for reuse. Or, call the Plastic Loose Fill Producers Council to find a drop-off site: 800/828-2214. For places to drop off foam blocks for recycling, contact the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers who will direct you.
compost your XMAS TREE HERE.
recycle your PLASTIC BAGS at WALMART and STOP N SHOP
donate BUSINESS ATTIRE at DRESS FOR SUCCESS
donate EYEGLASSES at GIVE THE GIFT OF SIGHT. also, try your local LION’S CLUB, eye care chain or post office.
swap EXERCISE VIDEOS at VIDEO FITNESS
resell or trade SPORTS EQUIPMENT to PLAY IT AGAIN SPORTS
recycle OLD SNEAKERS at NIKE. or if they are still GOOD SNEAKERS, donate them to ONE WORLD RUNNING who will send them to athletes in need in Africa, Latin America, and Haiti.
give & take BOOKS at BOOK CROSSING
buy, sell, trade your STUFF at BUFFALO EXCHANGE
donate STUFF to the SALVATION ARMY
donate use PRESCRIPTION MEDS to THE STARFISH PROJECT
donate & purchase surplus CARPET at CARPET RECOVERY
unload your STUFF to the charities listed on UNIVERSAL GIVING
donate CELLS & CARTRIDGES to help schools & non-profit groups at FUNDING FACTORY
recycle VIDEO TAPES & FLOPPIES – while helping the mentally disabled – at ACT
recycle all your GADGETS and GADGET PARTS (too many things to list) at GREEN DISK
donate CELLS at DONATE A PHONE
donate SINGLE LINE PHONES at RECLAMERE
recycle your DELL
recycle your APPLE
recycle your HEWLETT-PACKARD
recycle at BEST BUY (cells, rechargeable batteries, appliances, tvs, ink jet cartridges)
recycle your TOSHIBA
recycle COMPUTERS, SOFTWARE, PERIPHERALS – and help disabled – at NATIONAL CRISTINA FOUNDATION
recycle all your BATTERIES at BATTERY SOLUTIONS
recycle rechargeable BATTERIES & CELLS at RBRC
recycle your CELL at COLLECTIVE GOOD
recycle your CELL at DONATE A PHONE, who give them to domestic violence victims
recycle compact FLUORESCENT BULBS, ENERGY EFFICIENT bulbs & non-rechargeable ALKALINE BATTERIES, paper & plastic bags at IKEA
donate STUFF, including good appliances, to GOODWILL
recycle old or BROKEN APPLIANCES at THE STEEL RECYCLING INSTITUTE
donate & buy used MOVING BOXES at USED CARDBOARD BOXES. or give them away on FREECYCLE, CRAIGSLIST. also, call local women’s shelter who always needs them.
Send scratched CDs, DVDs, and PLAYSTATION or NINTENDO VIDEO GAME DISKS to AURALTECH for refinishing, and they’ll work like new.
get paid for your old CARTRIDGES at RECYCLE PLACE
recycle your old MOTOR OIL at RECYCLE OIL
purchase your CARBON OFFSETS LIVE NEUTRAL, NATIVE ENERGY, CARBON FUND
green your website at CO2 STATS and DREAMHOST
TOOTHBRUSHES & RAZORS: Buy a recycled plastic toothbrush or razor from ToothbrushRecycline, and the company will take it back to be recycled again into plastic lumber. RECYCLINE products are made from used Stonyfield Farms’ yogurt cups.
TYVEK ENVELOPES: Quantities less than 25: Send to Shirley Cimburke, Tyvek Recycling Specialist, 5401 Jefferson Davis Hwy., Spot 197, Room 231, Richmond, VA 23234. Quantities larger than 25, call 866/33-TYVEK.
find a charity in the directory at NETWORK FOR GOOD
EARTH 911 is a great recycling resource.
how exactly does a landfill work anyway? find out…
state directory on where to ecycle
ecycle directory by state EIA
EPA ECYCLE general ecycling directory
recycle your food stuff…COMPOST 101
get rid of your junk mail: GREEN DIMES
LOWES will take old batteries from your power tools for recycling.
OFFICE DEPOT will take any kind of “tech trash” for a small fee.
via the WEATHER CHANNEL… take the water from your humidifier or the wait for it to warm up so you can wash you face, and use it to flush the toilet… how smart!
