Re: DO YOU RECYCLE ?

lovescats · ‎03-10-2010

@blahblahvampemerblah wrote:
@faeriemoon wrote:
I can't understand how anyone can not recycle, or have no interest in recycling.

Look up the Washington Post's article on recycling. Many items have to get sorted out for transport to the landfill, and I certainly won't use water to recycle certain things.

Just because you put it in a can or bin doesn't mean it can actually be used. A lot also depends on your area.

I did look up that article and it did change my way of looking at things.

Apparently the whole think recycling process needs to be rethought. Plastic is so much lighter now it floats up into the paper batches and countries like china that make particle boards reject batches of paper if they see too match plastic caught in with the paper.

I won't recycle glass anymore broken glass shards can contaminate a whole load.

Mominohio · ‎08-08-2010

@Winifred wrote:
I forgot to add something that perhaps I should have. While we have curbside pickup for recyclables, that still means we also must fill our car trunk with certain items and take to a recycling facility. I think it has also been mentioned we cannot put TVs, computers, light bulbs, batteries, etc curbside - we MUST take them elsewhere - yep, WE drive them there in OUR car. I did mention we take some of our cans, bottles, some metals, etc to a recycling plant to get $ back - which we paid extra when we bought them.

Quite frankly can't imagine one single reason for not recycling - no curbside pick up is NOT a valid reason. Drive the stuff to a facility that handles these things - like I said, even with curbside pickup we still have to do a lot of this also. My goodness - and yes, we have "dumps" here also and guess what, you cannot take garbage, recyclables, all in one container. NONE will accept that so you still have to sort everything if you want to use a landfill. Reality check time.

What if you don't have a car and have to get a ride from someone everywhere you go.

What if you don't have a car, and rely on public transportation in a town that has no curbside pickup?

What if you are ill, disabled and elderly, and loading the car, driving to a center, unloading a car etc. is hard or dangerous for you?

Quite frankly, some people here just don't get that not everyone has the same abilities and options that they do.

How about if there are no reasons, no excuses, and it is so important that EVERYONE, regardless of their lot in life get this done, don't y'all sign up to help those who have no way to do so.

Sooner · ‎03-10-2010

@Noel7 wrote:
@Sooner

Amazon boxes are recyclable and made from recycled material. Every brown box we get at home, DH breaks down and recycles.

I hardly ever get canned anything, most cat food, though, and they are recycled. I never buy soda or bottled water. I have very little of that type of packaging to recycle. I cook from scratch almost all of the time, and I recycle the organic material left.

Don't assume others of us aren't doing our best. Most people at least try, you could help with just the little bit you accumulate.

You know nothing about how I live or what I do. I don't recycle--that's all you know. You don't know my physical or financial condition, how much access I have to recycling facilities, or what my living circumstances and family situation is. Other than my saying I don't recycle, you have no idea how much I contribute to the carbon load as opposed to what you do. I'd bet, knowing how we live, it is FAR less than most people. Even ones who recycle. I don't shop at Wal Mart. Plastic bags are almost never brought home--maybe once in a blue moon from CVS.

Also, you are not "saving the planet." You might be helping life as we know it, or people who have beach houses avoid erosion, but the earth will be just fine no matter what we do for a very long time. As it has been in the past, it will be different in the future--with or without us. It will be hotter and colder, and lots of other things. They may get to grow grapes in Greenland again.

Climate change is a fact. The ice caps come and go. Poles may flip again. Humanity is a blip on the radar of the earth. And like the dinosaurs we'll be outmoded some day too. So if you think of it, you might be saving rich people's beach houses and islands from rising seas. You know the ones they go to in private jets. . . LOL!!!

I'm a good person, I do a lot for people and have not much free time for me. Most of it is when I come here to chat and forget about a few things I need to do/HAVE to do for me and others. I don't feel one guilt pang about recycling. I have enough else to say grace over that is critical to my life and others. Everyone has their things they do and don't we. Nobody can do it all.

proudlyfromNJ · ‎05-01-2010

You are right Sooner. Planet has been here forever and will be. I have no kids. So, I believe recycling won't matter even if I am proven wrong. Many can get by with no recycling. Make your own mayo and ketchup or don't use them. No cans, etc. You can reduce your footprint. Do it.

nun ya · ‎03-09-2010

nevermind, saving myself while I can.

Cakers3 · ‎06-17-2015

@sunshine45 wrote:
@Lila Belle wrote:
Pqfan, glass is all things glass and paper is all things paper, including cardboard.

Don't worry. You'll do fine !

this really depends on where you live and what they recycle...... for example, paper is not all things paper. we cannot put kleenex, napkins, or paper towels in with the recycling. greasy pizza boxes cannot go in with recycling.

glass items that are not acceptable in our area include mirrors, drinking glasses, crystal, light bulbs, and a few other items.

it really is important to look at your county recycling website.

I'm glad you clarified that. All things glass and all things paper is not a standard.

Each community has it's own set of guidelines and that includes whether or not ontainers have to be rinsed out, for those concerned about water consumption.

A quick look online should answer any questions a person has - we have 3 containers - one for regular (garbage type), one for recyclables, and one for organics. Not everyone chooses the green organic bin but it's also not available yet in every neighborhood.

Also - some bins are supplied by one' city and others have fees for them.

General assumptions based on one's own community do not apply across the board.

Recycling discussions are trick due to the cost of running such plants and the cost of manufacturing recyclable containers.

My biggest pet peeve is the explosions of fast food containers in the last decades.

"" Compassion is a verb."-Thich Nhat Hanh

Noel7 · ‎03-09-2010

@Sooner wrote:
@Noel7 wrote:
@Sooner

Amazon boxes are recyclable and made from recycled material. Every brown box we get at home, DH breaks down and recycles.

I hardly ever get canned anything, most cat food, though, and they are recycled. I never buy soda or bottled water. I have very little of that type of packaging to recycle. I cook from scratch almost all of the time, and I recycle the organic material left.

Don't assume others of us aren't doing our best. Most people at least try, you could help with just the little bit you accumulate.
You know nothing about how I live or what I do. I don't recycle--that's all you know. You don't know my physical or financial condition, how much access I have to recycling facilities, or what my living circumstances and family situation is. Other than my saying I don't recycle, you have no idea how much I contribute to the carbon load as opposed to what you do. I'd bet, knowing how we live, it is FAR less than most people. Even ones who recycle. I don't shop at Wal Mart. Plastic bags are almost never brought home--maybe once in a blue moon from CVS.

Also, you are not "saving the planet." You might be helping life as we know it, or people who have beach houses avoid erosion, but the earth will be just fine no matter what we do for a very long time. As it has been in the past, it will be different in the future--with or without us. It will be hotter and colder, and lots of other things. They may get to grow grapes in Greenland again.

Climate change is a fact. The ice caps come and go. Poles may flip again. Humanity is a blip on the radar of the earth. And like the dinosaurs we'll be outmoded some day too. So if you think of it, you might be saving rich people's beach houses and islands from rising seas. You know the ones they go to in private jets. . . LOL!!!

I'm a good person, I do a lot for people and have not much free time for me. Most of it is when I come here to chat and forget about a few things I need to do/HAVE to do for me and others. I don't feel one guilt pang about recycling. I have enough else to say grace over that is critical to my life and others. Everyone has their things they do and don't we. Nobody can do it all.

**************************

@Sooner

I'd appreciate it if you did not use quote marks when referring to me. I said nothing about "saving the planet." Quote marks are used to show what someone actually said. Exact wording.

I don't have to know anything about you other than you said you do not recycle and your comments are certainly not supportive of it.

You also have facts wrong, as reflected by your comments about Amazon boxes.

Noel7 · ‎03-09-2010

@proudlyfromNJ wrote:
You are right Sooner. Planet has been here forever and will be. I have no kids. So, I believe recycling won't matter even if I am proven wrong. Many can get by with no recycling. Make your own mayo and ketchup or don't use them. No cans, etc. You can reduce your footprint. Do it.

******************************

@proudlyfromNJ

No, actually she is not right. I said nothing about saving the planet.

You are also incorrect that the planet will be here forever. The earth could be hit by a large meteor at any time, it's happened before with smaller meteors. And, at some point the sun will break down and burn out.

HappyDaze · ‎06-13-2012

@XmasCarol wrote:
I am big time into recycling, re-purposing and reusing. It just makes me feel good, like I'm helping Mother Earth :-)

Not everyone has the same recycling options available to them. My county's Waste department has a Facebook page, which I follow. I learn new things all of the time. I recently learned I could recycle some items I wasn't aware of: the plastic bag inside the breakfast cereal box can be recycled, as can baggies (such as sandwich baggies) as well as the plastic wrap that is used on cases of bottled water, iced tea, etc. Here where I live, these plastics go with the plastic shopping bags that get recycled at WalMart or the grocery store. I love learning about new things I can recycle!

Also learned I can recycle the metal lids used on glass jars. Guess I had never thought about that one, but now it seems so logical.

It's good to check in with the recycling center from time to time. I know here they are constantly trying to improve so that additional items that did go in the trash can now be recycled.

For those who mentioned washing their recycling wastes water, after I wash dishes the last thing I wash out are the recyclables like the messy mayo and peanut butter jars.

Excellent tip! I also like @Noel7 idea of just wiping it out- no need to wash it out with water and waste water.

italia8140 · ‎10-24-2015

@Noel7 wrote:
@proudlyfromNJ wrote:
You are right Sooner. Planet has been here forever and will be. I have no kids. So, I believe recycling won't matter even if I am proven wrong. Many can get by with no recycling. Make your own mayo and ketchup or don't use them. No cans, etc. You can reduce your footprint. Do it.
******************************

@proudlyfromNJ

No, actually she is not right. I said nothing about saving the planet.

You are also incorrect that the planet will be here forever. The earth could be hit by a large meteor at any time, it's happened before with smaller meteors. And, at some point the sun will break down and burn out.