Big News – my town of Arvada, CO has opened up a recycling drop-off for the town. Teaming up with Waste Management and re-purposing a pre-existing drop-off for yard clippings, this new drop-off now offers a single stream recycling the option to citizens of Arvada drop off any recyclable materials that they may not otherwise be recycling. The drop-off is located at 6161 Olde Wadsworth Boulevard (just North of Olde Town). See map below.

Arvada Recycling Drop Off Location

View Larger Map

Now- not to be confused with Arvada Recycling Center (a quaint location that accepts certain recyclable materials and will purchase non-Ferrous metals), the Arvada Recycling Drop off is located just north of Olde Town on Olde Wadsworth (see map). The single stream recycling roll off container sits in the southwest corner of the City of Arvada Street Maintenance Facility parking lot.

You can read my thoughts on single stream recycling and the materials that are allowed- short version: common containers, bottles, plastics #1 – 7. At any rate, I recently dropped off my first recycling load at the single stream roll-off (see picture).

Personally, I feel this is a great benefit to the area as I’ll no longer haul my recyclables up to the Boulder Recycling Center. Frankly, there may be other drop-off locations close to Arvada, but I often have the need to be in Boulder and dropping off recycling is just something I can do (and stop off at Avery Brewery afterwards). Incidentally, I’ll be able to swing by the Arvada Beer Company when it opens in early October 2011.

Let me know what you think about this new addition to Arvada in the comments. Too little too late? About time? … or something else?

Arvada Recycling Drop Off is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.

I recently took my car in for a regular oil change. To my curiosity and surprise I saw materials and an option for a new (well, new to me) type of oil change- an EcoPower Eco Friendly oil change. When I asked the store technician at my local GreaseMonkey he indicated “I think it’s more of a marketing ploy, but it uses recycled and re-refined motor oil which uses 85% less energy to product than conventional oil AND helps to reduce dependance on foreign oil.” Interesting. It is a similar synthetic oil change at the same price point – why wouldn’t anyone try this (if you’re buying synthetic oil changes). My thought exactly.

Green Oil Change – Recycling and reusing motor oil through re-refining
Like I said, this is new to me, so I’d be interested to hear if anyone has been using this oil for oil changes and if they notice any performance degradation or issues with using this oil. Please let me and other readers know of your experience in the comments section.

At any rate, Safety-Kleen the company that manufactures EcoPower Motor Oil appears to be doing positive things by collecting used oil from service shops and producing re-refined oil. A recent August 2011 press release from Safety-Kleen state that they have achieved a triple digit increase over last year’s sales (and let’s face it, even if it is just 100%, that is phenomenal growth) and is now available in over 700 service shops in the US. That’s a really great growth number for an industry that lacks many opportunities to make themselves “green”.

I have often wondered what service stations do with the recycled oil or rather, where the reclaimed oil goes and what it becomes? I’m glad to learn of this alternative and “eco-friendl-ier” oil change option.

When you need to get an oil change, please consider a green oil change (at participating auto repair, maintenance and lube shops). In an industry that takes a lot of heat for sustainability, political and cost issues, it’s nice to see that there is an option for a greener oil change when you take your vehicle in for routine servicing. At least consider it. Find a location offering EcoPower motor oil.

I did a quick search of “green motor oil” to find other products. I can find a few, G Oil and Pure Green, but am not having much luck of finding another popular manufacturer that have such broad distribution. If this is good for business, I expect that will change over the coming years.

Again, let me know your thoughts in the comments about the concept of re-refined oil and if you’d consider purchasing a green oil change perhaps using EcoPower Motor Oil.

Green Oil Change with Eco Power Motor Oil is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.

I’ve always, really, liked Patagonia. As in drool over the catalog/website “like”. Not only do they make great products but they’ve been effective stewards for living a low eco impact lifestyle for the Earth.

Yvon Chouinard is a fantastic Founder with a great philosophy- have you read his book – Let My People Go Surfing…
Patagonia, even spearheaded a campaign for retailers to participate in a program named 1% For The Planet. Whereby companies that participate agree to put 1% of their annual profits (every little bit counts) to an environmental conservation cause facilitated through Patagonia. IN ADDITION, Patagonia also offers recycling of their (and some other sportswear manufacturers) material for long underwear, base layers, fleeces etc. You can mail them back or drop them off at retail locations.

Enough of the Patagonia love fest?
Not yet. With a pedigree for doing right by nature and promoting how to be a great corporate and individual citizen, Patagonia has issued yet another Earth friendly message to customers- “Don’t buy our products unless you really need it, and if you do, shop for used products first.” Wow! Earth friendly and marketing all in one causing you to think twice about looking for an existing product to meet your needs (if you really need it). Read their official press release here.

This is something that fits in with the RecycleAllYear ethos. Think about how you can recycle multiple products that you need in life- clothing, sporting goods. Recycling is not just limited to cans, paper, cartons.

What do you think- more greenwashing or great eco-friendly awareness message to get us to think?

Let me know in the comments.

Patagonia encourages buying used is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.

If innovation in the recycling industry exists, then single stream recycling may be the most convenient recycling innovation to the consumer in quite some time. Basically, it takes the separation of the recycling materials out of the front end of the process and places it on the service provider/collector. Personally, I’ve had recycling separation anxiety when I have a material that doesn’t easily fall into one of the many “known” recyclable materials – aluminum cans, paperboard, plastic bags (of a certain recyclable plastic number) – that I could easily place in a recycling bin.

Now, thanks to a growing list of companies,* single stream recycling can be made more widely available for household consumers and some businesses. Again, the primary benefit removes the separation anxiety at the place of “disposal” (ie. the home or office) and placed it at the collection provider or collection center (ie. recycling center or recycling container).

Single Stream Recycling Process

The folks at Ecocycle have a made a great downloadable PDF of the single stream process and guidelines.

In addition to single stream recycling- allowing for the comingling of materials, there has also been an increase in recycling bins for separation at the point of disposal in public places- airports, convention centers, malls. All in an effort to make it easier to recycle and get the right materials into their correct place. Maybe that is for a different post in the future.

Growth in Recycling Users and Recycling Materials with Single Stream Recycling?
I’d like to see some research or a recycling statistics study on this, but while I think single stream recycling was a “pivot” or adaptation by companies to gain more infrequent recycling consumers- because there is less hassle or anxiety to separate recyclable materials, I still think there is room to grow. While single stream recycling certainly appears to be more convenient to the consumer, it is still up to you to place qualified recycling materials into the bin.

At some point, wouldn’t it be great if all waste was taken by your provider and sorted at the facility. You wouldn’t have a trash or recycling provider- just someone to take what you leave on the curb or dumpster and have the company do the separation for you.

I’d love to hear in the comments section what materials you have recycling separation anxiety about- frozen food containers?, ziploc baggies?, pizza boxes? – or would like to learn more about.

Single Stream Recycling: Solving for Recycling Separation Anxiety? is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.

Recycling paperboard has made the biggest impact in how much “trash” gets thrown away in our household. Since removing paperboard from our trash to the recycle pile, our weekly trash volume was cut by 40%. Weekly, we would place 2.5 bags of “trash” out for our curbside trash pickup for transport to the landfill. Now, after being conscious of paperboard as a recycle-able material, we now place 1.5 bags of trash per week. This is a huge savings in volume capacity to the landfills.

What is Paperboard? Can Paperboard be Recycled?
Paperboard, a cousin to cardboard, and also known as box board and container board is really, thicker paper. At some places you’ll find that paperboard may be combined with shredded paper due to the ‘lower grade’ or length of the paper threads. The trick in recycling paperboard is to evaluate the type you have – normal paperboard, shiny paperboard (most product packaging), a food to-go or take away paperboard box (though if heavily soiled can contaminate the other paper in the recycling process; through biodegrading of the food remnants). You’ll need to evaluate the paperboard and condition of the paperboard at the point of separation for recycling.

Overlooked Items as Recyclable Paperboard
Throwing out trash is one of those habits that is rote or something that is done without much thought to it. Think of the behavior and thought process of the situation: “I have something that I no longer need or is empty – I must throw it away”.

Therefore our trash would build up with paperboard recycling items such as:

toilet paper rolls
paper towel rolls
gift wrapping paper rolls
soap boxes
cereal boxes
frozen food boxes
most packaged food boxes from a grocery store
ice cream boxes
food “to-go” boxes or take away boxes

the list could go on….

Paperboard (and cardboard) account for the largest amount, in volume, of the materials that I take to our recycling center. It really makes one stop and think about one’s own consumption of materials when you stare at your stored recycling materials that need to go to the center. I look at the other piles of recyclable materials in addition to paperboard such as glass, containers, plastics and paper and think, “wow, that’s a lot of space that isn’t taken up in a landfill.” To me, it is quite a sobering thought.

Please check with your curbside recycling provider or local recycling center as to the exact types and condition of paperboard they will accept to recycle.

Please use the comments section below to bring up any other points I may have neglected to mention in this post. Happy Recycling!

Recycling Paperboard is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.

Before the year is out I wanted to tell you about an awesome gift I received for Christmas! In an effort to further reduce the organic waste, from our kitchen, that we contribute to our weekly trash (and ultimately, landfills) I was given a compost pail for Christmas.

Compost Pail for Kitchen Recycling - Click image for information and to purchase from Amazon.com

This compost pail (pictured left), which I will keep for kitchen recycling to help me with my goal of recycling more, allows for organic material waste from the cooking process to be placed in a gallon pail. This handy kitchen compost pail allows for vegetable scraps, egg shells, coffee grounds, tea leaves and other cooking herbs to be deposited in the pail and not the trash. Ultimately, the pail will need to be emptied into a compost bin or compost pile you keep (or frequent) outside.

The compost pail does come with filters to prevent decomposition (read: nasty, stinky and smelly) odors from overtaking your kitchen for a few days. I think this is a perfect gift for the cook and recycling minded individual looking for further materials to remove from the normal household trash.

Now with a compost pail and my knowledge about carton recycling, there will be a drastic reduction in our kitchen cooking scraps and cartons going to landfills from our trash.

If you’re a reader that already uses a compost pail or you end up purchasing a compost pail for your own kitchen recycling; please let me know your experiences with it, by leaving a comment below.

If you feel this is great information to pass along to your social network, please do so with any of the quick social network icon links below.

Compost Pail for Kitchen Recycling is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.

I’m always puzzled at whether or not food items that come in cartons, specifically juice or milk cartons, can be recycled.

I know that cardboard and paperboard can be recycled, but cartons seem to be a hybrid of the two, sometimes glossy, sometimes thicker than traditional paperboard. Do any of those qualities disqualify the carton from being recycled?

In an average kitchen, at least once per year (if not weekly) one can expect to find one of or many of these- a juice carton, milk carton, stock or broth carton, soup carton, juice boxes, etc. – that provide convenient storage and access to desired items. If you shop at a big-box retailer (ie. Costco or Sam’s Wholesale Club, etc.) you can expect to get boxes or sets of these cartons that you will ultimately need to dispose of. Multiply those cartons by all the cartons at schools, businesses, restaurants, convenience stores… and you can quickly imagine the staggering volume of cartons that may not be recycled. The cartons themselves seem (to me) to fall into a paperboard category, though they often have a plastic nozzle or capping mechanism. So, can I recycle cartons and if so, how do I recycle cartons? Do I need to cut out the plastic nozzle or mouth of the carton and place in my weekly curbside recycling pickup box or deliver to my area recycling facility and let them, literally, sort it out later.

The Answer – Yes! You can. Sort of.
My research led me to the ThinkGreen.com blog of the waste disposal company, Waste Management.

It turns out, depending on where you live and what waste disposal service or recycling service you use; it’s as easy as what I mentioned above. Toss it in with your curbside pickup or the appropriate receptacle at your recycling center. If you have to separate materials for your scheduled pickup or local/regional recycling facility, it goes in with the plastic and aluminum can section. So check with your recycling service or center.

One of the other things I learned from the ThinkGreen.com blog on carton recycling, in addition to the above, is that (what I’ll describe as) “carton recycling uncertainty” by the consumer is an increasing concern. The blog states that Waste Management has partnered with Tropicana and the Carton Council for the need to elevate the awareness of carton recycling by working with all parties involved in bringing container items to market. Collectively they are bringing suppliers, manufacturers, marketing departments and branding agencies (specifically those that focus on package design) together to make container recycling more apparent to the consumer; who ultimately decides on the final resting place of the empty containers. Recycling bin or trash bin?

To me, it would seem an ideal location to place any recycling messaging on along the bottom border of any vertical side and on the bottom of the container. I find that when I’m at the end of a container of liquid, the container is upside down and a prime area to place a ‘This is Recycleable’ message that I would see.

Now, any time I empty out an orange juice carton, soup carton or milk carton I’ll know for certain the carton can be recycled. On that note, that’s one more item I will recycle more of. You should to.

Let me know your thoughts on carton recycling in the comments below. Does your waste removal service or local/regional recycling facility accept or educate you on carton recycling?

Carton Recycling is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.

Hey! America Recycles Day is this week. Are you recycling?

If you didn’t know America Recycles Day is, officially, this Sunday the 15th of November.  Now in it’s twelfth year, according to the site, this day was established to encourage Americans to evaluate their recycling habits, increase their own recycling efforts (something this blog is trying to raise awareness to) as well as to encourage consumers of the option to buy recycled products. I encourage you to visit the AmericaRecyclesDay.org site as it provides interactive tools such as a recycling impact conversion calculator to calculate your recycling impact, a calendar of events and a pledge form for those that want to pledge to increasing their personal efforts in raising recycling awareness in their area.

Colorado Recycling Events
While this is a national recycling event there are many recycling events going on throughout this week, around the State of Colorado. Below are a few recycling events in the Denver metro area, but not a complete list.

Boulder, Co – Nov. 13 – Naropa University (on campus by their Cafe)

• There will be a tent and booth focusing on education.
• Used battery drop off for collection.
• Games and Trivia for prizes.
• Boulder, Colorado America Recycles Day Contact Information

Aurora, Co – Nov. 16 – Various Locations

• Collection of used batteries and devices containing mercury at Fire Station No. 8, 250 S. Chambers Road
• Throughout November free paper shredding at Curbside DataControl and Confidential Screening, 15686 E. Batavia Drive.
• Aurora, Colorado America Recycles Day Contact Information

Click for other City of Aurora recycling programs in November.

Other Colorado Recycling Events
Please be sure to visit www.americarecyclesday.org to find other recycling events in Colorado or information on recycling events for your State.
You can also find future recycling events from the Colorado Association for Recycling.

If any of the America Recycles Day events don’t fit into your schedule, you can also stay up to date with recycling information and resources to better your recycling habits from this blog, RecycleAllYear.com by signing up for our RSS feed. This blog will continue to provide future recycling event information along with resources to help you better your recycling habits and information regarding the materials you can and can’t (along with an explanation of why you can’t) recycle.

If anybody else has any information about other upcoming Colorado recycling events in November or December, feel free to post that information in the comments section below.

America Recycles Day November 15 is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.

Like any blog, one has to start somewhere. I start here, now…somewhere in the middle.

As I get older, I become more aware about what I consume in terms of purchases and all the physical materials that are part of a purchase. Whether it be groceries, clothes from a store, a new tv (or computer), birthday gifts, cards……you name it, I seem to be more conscious about the fact that if I buy something there are byproduct(s) of consumption/consumerism that have to be dealt with.

Byproducts of consumption/consumerism or where did all this stuff come from? There are plastic bags or cardboard boxes that enclose your items to make transport easier, there are product protection and preservation materials such as Styrofoam, rolled paper, plastic, air filled plastic, foam…there are enclosures such as paper, product packaging (mostly in the form of paperboard), aluminum, steel, other metals and glass to name a few. There is quite a lot that goes into delivering or shipping a product and quite a lot that packages or encases a product. All you want is that item(s) and you’re left with the byproduct of getting the item(s).

The latest information from the EPA and the Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) report from 2007 (FYI, this report gets updated every 2 years; awaiting a ’09 updated) noted that the largest percentage of MSW by category was Containers and Packaging; accounting for 31% or 78 Million tons. The good news (link to the 12 page fact sheet PDF) is that the recycling of those Containers and Packaging materials was the highest by percentage to be recycled. Through recycling efforts, 43% or 24 Million of the 78 Million tons was recovered through recycling.

So my question is, with consumerism on the rise (or is it just a volume adjustment of normal purchasing behavior due to population increase) how can we increase the recovery percentage of Containers and Packaging along with the other categories? I assume some folks recycle some of the recyclable materials? Maybe not? What if the majority of people throw everything away? What are people’s habits in relation to handling these materials and thinking “I should recycle this” or “I need to throw this away”? Is it a convenience to just throw things away and not worry about it? Out of site, out of mind? These are some of the questions I ponder more and more and relate to why I started a recycling blog.

Recycle This! is a post from: RecycleAllYear.com
Click to tell me about your recycling efforts.