The world is always moving forward with new inventions and ideas coming in and old ones going out day after day; the speed of progression is almost hard to keep up with. Practices deemed safe for years are now being discovered as unsafe, and change is always upon us. Luckily for the environment, this is a good thing. Scientists and researchers alike are finding that many of our traditional ways of environmental preservation are not as good as they thought. Changes in how our Waste Management handles garbage and recycling are sure to be on the way. Now that we’re coming up with effective ways to cut down on our paper and plastic waste, what about all of those cigarettes? I don’t think I can walk down a street without seeing a few cigarette butts scattered around. It’s gross. According to terracycle.com, 38 percent of the litter on the road is cigarette waste. TerraCycle, a company focused on recycling and bringing awareness and action to environmental issues, created the Cigarette Waste Brigade recycling program. The program allows an individual over the age of 21, organization, or business to collect and send cigarette waste directly to TerraCycle. Once TerraCycle receives the waste, they then compost the paper and filter and recycle it into shipping pallets, ashtrays, and a variety of other products. At the moment, it doesn’t seem all too convenient to run around picking up cigarette butts and shipping them off to get recycled, but it’s a good start. If anything, the idea is to bring attention to the enormous problem of cigarette littering. For more information on TerraCycle’s Cigarette Waste Brigade recycling program, visit terracycle.com.

The world is always moving forward with new inventions and ideas coming in and old ones going out day after day; the speed of progression is almost hard to keep up with. Practices deemed safe for years are now being discovered as unsafe, and change is always upon us. Luckily for the environment, this is a good thing. Scientists and researchers alike are finding that many of our traditional ways of environmental preservation are not as good as they thought. Changes in how our Waste Management handles garbage and recycling are sure to be on the way. Now that we’re coming up with effective ways to cut down on our paper and plastic waste, what about all of those cigarettes? I don’t think I can walk down a street without seeing a few cigarette butts scattered around. It’s gross. According to terracycle.com, 38 percent of the litter on the road is cigarette waste. TerraCycle, a company focused on recycling and bringing awareness and action to environmental issues, created the Cigarette Waste Brigade recycling program. The program allows an individual over the age of 21, organization, or business to collect and send cigarette waste directly to TerraCycle. Once TerraCycle receives the waste, they then compost the paper and filter and recycle it into shipping pallets, ashtrays, and a variety of other products. At the moment, it doesn’t seem all too convenient to run around picking up cigarette butts and shipping them off to get recycled, but it’s a good start. If anything, the idea is to bring attention to the enormous problem of cigarette littering. For more information on TerraCycle’s Cigarette Waste Brigade recycling program, visit terracycle.com. We definitely have a long way to go with waste management, but with major cities like San Francisco banning plastics and New York City starting programs for mandatory composting, we’re moving in the right direction.

TerraCycle's Butt Bucket Brigade is mentioned, with proceeds going to Feed My Starving Children. Ruidoso News Final

May 31--PANAMA CITY BEACH -- After joining a worldwide movement to "outsmart waste" last fall, Pier Park is expanding its efforts this summer by launching an area-wide initiative to keep waste out of landfills. Through a partnership with worldwide recycling pioneer TerraCycle, the shopping center signed on to participate in a Cigarette Waste Brigade last year, in which cigarette butts are collected and recycled into plastic pellets for industrial use. Since the brigade's inception, TerraCycle has collected more than 13.5 million units of cigarette butts from 4,801 collection locations. The effort was so successful at Pier Park that officials have decided to expand to recycling other products through TerraCycle's various brigade programs. "As part of Simon Property Group, Pier Park is proud to expand its recycling efforts aligned with TerraCycle's innovative Waste Brigade programs," said Pier Park General Manager Brent Gardner. "Pier Park is committed to doing its part to create a more sustainable environment for generations to come, and this expanded effort will positively reduce landfill waste, which is a primary environmental goal." Starting in June, area residents and visitors are encouraged to bring recyclables to Pier Park on the first Saturday of every month between 9 a.m. and noon. Pier Park will be collecting items for 21 different TerraCycle brigades, which will then be packaged and sent to the organization to be recycled. Categories include: iPod and MP3 players; laptop, tablets and E-readers; Brita filter products; cellphones; cheese packaging; cigarette butts; cleaner packaging; Colgate products packaging; dairy tubs; diaper packaging; drink pouches; Elmer's glue sticks, bottles and caps; energy bar wrappers; Glad food storage products; inkjet and toner cartridges; lunch kit packaging (Lunchables); pairs of shoes; personal care and beauty products; Scotch tape; snack bags; and writing instruments. Founded in 2001, TerraCycle works with hundreds of major brands in the U.S. and in dozens of other countries to collect and repurpose materials that would otherwise end up in landfills. For more information on TerraCycle, visit www.terracycle.com. For more information on recycling programs at Pier Park visit www.simon.com/mall/pier-park or call (850) 236-9979.

PANAMA CITY BEACH — After joining a worldwide movement to “outsmart waste” last fall, Pier Park is expanding its efforts this summer by launching an area-wide initiative to keep waste out of landfills. Through a partnership with worldwide recycling pioneer TerraCycle, the shopping center signed on to participate in a Cigarette Waste Brigade last year, in which cigarette butts are collected and recycled into plastic pellets for industrial use. Since the brigade’s inception, TerraCycle has collected more than 13.5 million units of cigarette butts from 4,801 collection locations. The effort was so successful at Pier Park that officials have decided to expand to recycling other products through TerraCycle’s various brigade programs. “As part of Simon Property Group, Pier Park is proud to expand its recycling efforts aligned with TerraCycle’s innovative Waste Brigade programs,” said Pier Park General Manager Brent Gardner. “ PierPark is committed to doing its part to create a more sustainable environment for generations to come, and this expanded effort will positively reduce landfill waste, which is a primary environmental goal.” Starting in June, area residents and visitors are encouraged to bring recyclables to Pier Park on the first Saturday of every month between 9 a.m. and noon. Pier Park will be collecting items for 21 different TerraCycle brigades, which will then be packaged and sent to the organization to be recycled. Categories include: iPod and MP3 players; laptop, tablets and E-readers; Brita filter products; cellphones; cheese packaging; cigarette butts; cleaner packaging; Colgate products packaging; dairy tubs; diaper packaging; drink pouches; Elmer’s glue sticks, bottles and caps; energy bar wrappers; Glad food storage products; inkjet and toner cartridges; lunch kit packaging (Lunchables); pairs of shoes; personal care and beauty products; Scotch tape; snack bags; and writing instruments.