TERRACYCLE NEWS

ELIMINATING THE IDEA OF WASTE®

‘NOT YOUR TRADITIONAL RECYCLING PROGRAM’

TerraCycle Include USA Tom's of Maine Late July Burt’s Bees
Lillian and Pearl Lassen are chipping in to make their corner of the world a greener place — one potato chip bag at a time.   The mother/daughter duo last year started a grassroots effort in Sandpoint to recycle certain products that are not accepted as part of the curbside blue bin recycling programs seen in towns across the country.   “This is not your traditional recycling program,” Lillian says.   Those who participate in the program can drop certain materials at Winter Ridge Market, 703 Lake Street.   Lillian and her daughter Pearl, 7, made boxes listing the items that are to be placed in the designated containers. They used biodegradable tape and recycled paper to decorate the boxes which are marked for Late July brand potato chips, as well as personal hygiene products made by Toms of Main and Burt’s Bees.   When the boxes are full, the Lassens ship them to TerraCycle, a New Jersey-based firm that collects non-recyclable consumer waste, and then partners with corporate donors or municipalities to turn it into raw material to be used in new products.   TerraCycle recycles virtually anything, from cigarette butts, to used chewing gum to certain plastics that cannot be put in the blue recycling bins, Lassen said.   “I wanted to share activities with her daughter to help benefit others in need and the environment,” she said. “Pearl wanted to cut back on buying products in bags that could not be recycled. The idea is to reduce, recycle and reuse.”   The environmentally conscious duo aims to reduce waste that is thrown out.   “There is just so much was waste in packaging,” Lassen said. “This is an effort to take baby steps to increase awareness and create memories with my daughter.”   Lassen said the program has been a success and she plans to eventually expand the materials that are accepted at Winter Ridge Market.   “The boxes in the store have done really well,” she said. “People are really thankful for the opportunity to recycle (materials) that would otherwise end up in the dump.”