Many thanks to those of you who are taking advantage of the convenience sites throughout the county for recycling. Since we reintroduced mixed paper: magazines, junk mail, circulars along with newspaper, we have been very pleased with the amounts collected at each site. Thank you for being mindful of not throwing any plastic bags or other waste into these containers. We are also happy about the switch folks have made to just glass bottles and jars in our containers and steel cans in a separate metal bin. Thanks for being aware of the signage and following these procedures. I, for one, remain saddened by plastics, though. Limiting our plastic options to just containers with necks forces me to look for other options, but sometimes wishes come true. As reported in Waste 360, a technical weekly journal for our industry, Newell Brands and Rubbermaid are working together with Terracycle to offer individuals a unique opportunity. In an attempt to divert waste plastic from our landfills, this wonderful partnership is providing an outlet for any food storage product. As of July 14, Rubbermaid and Terracycle are providing a program for us to recycle plastic food containers. There are a few things that you must do in order to work with their program. 1. Go to their website: www.terracycle.com 2. Join in as a new member 3. Browse through the pages of items that Terracycle handles! 4. Make sure you review their guidelines and requirements. After all, they are providing a much needed outlet for things we want to recycle, let’s follow the rules. 5. Be aware of the amounts to recycle…for these plastic food containers, it will depend on the size box that you will ship them in. I printed off my first mailing label, and it had a weight of three pounds. Probably a good place to start! 6. You will create an account with Terracycle and be able to print a shipping label. 7. This program can be for individuals, groups, schools or businesses. I’m excited about the chance to start small (charity begins at home?) and if this works well, I will expand to my workplace or maybe neighborhood. Keep in mind that Tupperware is a time tested product for food storage. It is very responsible of them to also help the plastics industry help with the waste created by the plastics industry. If only other manufacturers would do the same. But wait! Take a look at the rest of the Terracycle drop down screen…they provide recycling for many odd things, but many of them are product specific. For example, if you are a big user of Arm & Hammer and OxiClean, they will recycle the pouches that these products come in. They sponsor a bakery bag recycling program for bags from breads, rolls and bagels. There is a Brita recycling program for filters and units! The list is rather extensive but also very specific. If you are interested and have the space in your home to store these materials, there are ways to recycle! Please remember, though, your county convenience sites can handle your plastic bottles, glass bottles, steel cans, aluminum cans, corrugated cardboard and the variety of papers from magazines, to junk mail to circulars to newspapers; we also accept scrap metal, up to 5 tires (off rims), used motor oil, used antifreeze and rechargeable batteries. We accept fluorescent lamps from homeowners (fee for small businesses, referrals for larger businesses) and used cooking oil from homeowners at the Gaston County Landfill. Call for an appointment…704-922-0267! And one last thing, we are accepting latex paint, by appointment only, 704-922-7729, from homeowners! We can only take latex paints!