School's Out For Summer

Now that the kids are around and underfoot, now would be a great time to capture their energy. They are coming off a busy school year where I hoped they learned about the 3R’s of recycling; Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. You could easily sit down with them and develop a new recycling program at your home or update your existing one. Here is what I suggest.

For those of you who self-haul (75% of the county), the simplest thing to do is get 4 big garbage cans. With your kids, label the first one “Clean Paper”. This is where all your newspaper, cereal boxes, magazines, junk mail, and any other scrap paper goes. The second mark “Clean Plastic”. Here you will put your bottles, tubs, lids, trays, hangars, toys, etc… all of which is free of food and oil. The third simply mark “Metal”. Here is where your tin cans and aluminum goes. For the last one, mark “Glass Bottles and Jars”. Simply rinse your bottles and jars and place carefully in the can.

Once this is done you are ready to go!

Now, on you regular weekly garbage trip to the transfer station (aka “the dump” or “landfill”), simply grab the bin or bins that are full and ready to go. When you get to the transfer station you will find places to put the four materials described along with all your cardboard, yard waste, motor oil, car batteries, and plastic bags all for recycling!

Don’t forget that together we can reduce our waste and “Trash Douglas County Less!”

For more information on reducing your waste, visit us online at www.RecyclePower.org