Diminuir o uso das embalagens e reutilizá-las gera um resultado mais rápido e eficiente na redução de resíduos

No entanto, para ajudar a resolver essa questão, a TerraCycle em parceria com a Scotch-Brite, criou um programa de reciclagem de esponjas usadas.

Our planet is changing. So is our journalism. This story is part of Our Changing Planet, a CBC News initiative to show and explain the effects of climate change and what is being done about it. Ginger Merpaw of London, Ont., has been wearing contact lenses for nearly 40 years and had no idea that micro plastics from them end up in waterways and landfills. To minimize the big impact that these tiny lenses can have on the environment, hundreds of optometry clinics across Canada are taking part in a special program that aims to get them and their packaging recycled. The Bausch+ Lomb Every Contact Counts Recycling Program encourages people to drop off their contacts in a bag to a participating clinic for them to be packaged for recycling. "You recycle plastics and things like that but I never guessed you could recycle contacts. When I take them out I put them in the garbage can, so I just assumed that they biodegrade normally and never thought anything of it," Merpaw said. She's not the only one, said Dr. Riyad Khamis of Highbury-Huron Optometry in London. Khamis said about 20 per cent of lens wearers either flush them down the toilet or throw them in the trash. His clinic is one of 250 locations in Ontario participating in the recycling program. "Contact lenses are sometimes overlooked in terms of a recycling aspect, so this is a great opportunity to help the environment," he said. Over 290 million contacts end up in landfills every year, according to TerraCycle, a recycling company leading the project. They said the totals could rise as the number of daily contact wearers increases. "Something so small adds up over the span of a year. If you have daily lenses, you are disposing of 365 pairs," said Wendy Sherman, senior accounts manager with TerraCycle, which also partners with other consumer product companies, retailers and cities for recycling efforts. "Contact lenses are such a vital part to many people, and when it's something that's so routine, you oftentimes forget that this can have an impact on the environment." The program, which launched two years ago, has already collected one million contact lenses and their packaging.

'It's for our environment'

Hoson Kablawi has worn daily contacts for more than 10 years. She was shocked to hear they can be recycled. She usually disposes of them in her compost. "Contacts aren't going anywhere. Not everyone's comfortable getting Lasik surgery, and not everyone wants to wear glasses, especially with masks," she said. "With contacts, the demand will keep going up and if we can do something about minimizing the waste, we should." Sherman said recycling directly impacts what ends up in landfills. "This [landfills] is where lots of methane is produced, which is a lot more potent than carbon dioxide, so by eliminating some aspects of waste, you're minimizing the impact it can have." A national recycling program looks to minimize the harmful impact that contact lenses can have on the environment. One of its Ontario locations is at the Huron-Highbury Optometry clinic in London. (Isha Bhargava/CBC) The lenses themselves — along with their blister packs, foils, and cases — can all be recycled. Both Kablawi and Merpaw, along with her daughters, who also wear contacts, will now start gathering them up in a container to drop them off to their local optometrists, they said. "It's our environment. It's a place where we live and we have to take care of it, and if this is one more step in the right direction toward making our planet healthier, I'm willing to do that," Merpaw added. Information on the closest participating optometry clinic to you, throughout Canada, can be found on TerraCycle's website

Contact lens users will now have an option of getting rid of their disposable contact lenses without them ending up in landfills. Shelburne Optometry has joined a group of eye doctors across the province taking part in a new program that recycles disposable contact lenses. Through the Bausch + Lomb Every Contact Counts Recycling Program, consumers are able to drop off all brands of disposable contact lenses and their blister pack packaging to participating eye doctor location to be recycled. “Contact lenses are one of the forgotten waste streams that are often overlooked due to their size and how commonplace they are in today’s society,” said Tom Szaky, founder and CEO of TerraCycle. “Program like the Bausch + Lomb Every Contact Counts Recycling Program allows eye doctors to work within their community and take an active role in preserving the environment, beyond what their local municipal recycling programs are able to provide.” He added, “By creating this recycling initiative, our aim was to provide an opportunity where whole communities are able to collect waste alongside a national network of public drop-off locations all with the unified goal to increase the number of recycled contact lenses and their associated packaging, thereby reducing their impact on landfills.” To learn more about the contacts recycling program, how to become a public drop-off location or to search for the nearest participating location visit – www.terracycle.ca. Paula Brown, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Shelburne Free Press

May 06, 2022 // Franchising.com // Did you know that when you enjoy a great cup of Dunkin® coffee brewed at home, you also have a chance to help reduce the amount of plastic that ends up in landfills? Thanks to the Dunkin’® Coffee Bag Recycling Program, you can easily mail in your used Dunkin’ flexible ground and whole bean coffee bags to be recycled. And it’s completely free! To make this happen, Dunkin’ has partnered with The J.M. Smucker Company, distributor of Dunkin’ coffee sold in grocery stores, and international recycling leader TerraCycle® to create a national program to recycle all Dunkin’ brand flexible ground and whole bean coffee bags. The bags are then cleaned and melted into hard plastic that can be remolded to make new recycled products like park benches and picnic tables. Get started by signing up with TerraCycle here, and be sure to check out their innovative recycling process. After that, recycle your empty Dunkin’ brand flexible ground and whole bean coffee bags. It’s as easy as 1-2-3:

1. Collect used Dunkin’ at Home flexible coffee bags; no special container needed
2. Log in to your account to download and print a pre-paid shipping label
3. Place the label on your box of used bags, and send the package via UPS

The benefits of this program go beyond keeping plastic waste out of landfills. For every shipment sent to TerraCycle through the recycling program, you can earn points that can be donated to a non-profit, school or charitable organization of your choice. If you jump in to recycle your Dunkin’ brand flexible coffee bags, don’t keep the good news to yourself. Let us know, and inspire others on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok! To stay up to date on all things Dunkin', sign up for our email news alerts at news.dunkindonuts.com/alerts.

About Dunkin’

Founded in 1950, Dunkin' is America's favorite all-day, everyday stop for coffee and baked goods. Dunkin' is a market leader in the hot regular/decaf/flavored coffee, iced regular/decaf/flavored coffee, donut, bagel, and muffin categories. Dunkin' has earned a No. 1 ranking for customer loyalty in the coffee category by Brand Keys for 15 years running. The company has more than 12,600 franchised restaurants in 40 countries worldwide. Dunkin' is part of the Inspire Brands family of restaurants. For more information, visit www.DunkinDonuts.com. SOURCE Dunkin'

Contact lens users will now have an option of getting rid of their disposable contact lenses without them ending up in landfills. Shelburne Optometry has joined a group of eye doctors across the province taking part in a new program that recycles disposable contact lenses. Through the Bausch + Lomb Every Contact Counts Recycling Program, consumers are able to drop off all brands of disposable contact lenses and their blister pack packaging to participating eye doctor location to be recycled. “Contact lenses are one of the forgotten waste streams that are often overlooked due to their size and how commonplace they are in today’s society,” said Tom Szaky, founder and CEO of TerraCycle. “Program like the Bausch + Lomb Every Contact Counts Recycling Program allows eye doctors to work within their community and take an active role in preserving the environment, beyond what their local municipal recycling programs are able to provide.” He added, “By creating this recycling initiative, our aim was to provide an opportunity where whole communities are able to collect waste alongside a national network of public drop-off locations all with the unified goal to increase the number of recycled contact lenses and their associated packaging, thereby reducing their impact on landfills.” To learn more about the contacts recycling program, how to become a public drop-off location or to search for the nearest participating location visit – www.terracycle.ca.