Both Chemung and Tioga counties recycle much material, including plastic grocery bags in Tioga. There are some things, however, neither county takes, such as plastic bowls or tubs for yogurt, margarine, Cool Whip, deli foods and the like. I always cringe when I throw those items away. If you'd like to reduce the quantity of waste going into the landfill and at the same time do something for the planet by donating items that will be refashioned into something else, it's now easy in Spencer-Van Etten. Following is a list of many items that you can recycle locally, as long as they are clean and free of food bits: juice pouches, empty chip bags (all sizes), candy bar wrappers from Mars/Wrigley or Cadbury, Lunchables lunch kits (all parts), plastic wrappers from Scott brand paper products, all Kraft cheese bags and cream cheese tubs, Scotch tape rolls and dispensers, shampoo and conditioner bottles, energy and granola bar wrappers, cookie bags and wrappers with the plastic trays, Colgate toothpaste tubes, toothbrushes and cardboard packaging, plastic butter tubs, plastic Solo cups, Elmer's glue sticks and bottles, yogurt cups, cell phones, MP3 players, ink jet printer cartridges, laptop computers, computer keyboards, computer mice and digital cameras.

Both Chemung and Tioga counties recycle much material, including plastic grocery bags in Tioga. There are some things, however, neither county takes, such as plastic bowls or tubs for yogurt, margarine, Cool Whip, deli foods and the like. I always cringe when I throw those items away. If you'd like to reduce the quantity of waste going into the landfill and at the same time do something for the planet by donating items that will be refashioned into something else, it's now easy in Spencer-Van Etten. Following is a list of many items that you can recycle locally, as long as they are clean and free of food bits: juice pouches, empty chip bags (all sizes), candy bar wrappers from Mars/Wrigley or Cadbury, Lunchables lunch kits (all parts), plastic wrappers from Scott brand paper products, all Kraft cheese bags and cream cheese tubs, Scotch tape rolls and dispensers, shampoo and conditioner bottles, energy and granola bar wrappers, cookie bags and wrappers with the plastic trays, Colgate toothpaste tubes, toothbrushes and cardboard packaging, plastic butter tubs, plastic Solo cups, Elmer's glue sticks and bottles, yogurt cups, cell phones, MP3 players, ink jet printer cartridges, laptop computers, computer keyboards, computer mice and digital cameras.

MÉRIDA, Yuc.- Transformar los residuos y basura en objetos útiles, meta de la empresa TerraCycle.

¿Qué hace usted con la basura?, seguramente la envía en el camión recolector a los centros de confinamiento. Pero para estos jóvenes es materia prima que utilizan para elaborar artículos básicos de uso diario y de todo tipo. Bolsos, porta vasos, carteras, sillones, en fin un sin número de objetos de gran utilidad.

TRENTON, N.J., January 5, 2012 – In an effort to divert more waste from landfills and help businesses engage local communities, recycling and upcycling pioneer TerraCycle is encouraging dental offices to sign up for the Oral Care Brigade, a free recycling program for oral care products, by offering free local marketing campaigns to offices that sign up. By joining the Brigade and collecting previously non-recyclable toothbrushes, tooth paste tubes, tooth paste caps and floss containers , dental offices can offer their existing customers and the local community an easy way to earn extra funding for local schools or charities, while also creating free marketing and consumer engagement opportunities.

TerraCycle takes recycling to a whole new level with their recycling brigades program. The company was originally founded in 2001 by Tom Szaky, a then 20 year old Princeton University Freshman. TerraCycle started by producing organic fertilizer (worm poop) in used soda bottles.

¿Recuerdas que en Marzo hablamos aquí de una empresa en la cual podías ganar dinero reciclando basura en pro de alguna asociación benefica de una manera muy sencilla y ayudando al planeta? Efectivamente, estábamos hablando de TerraCycle. Esta empresa pro ambiente, se ha aliado con Pepsico para crear una campaña de conciencia nacional, y hacer ver la importancia de que no existe tal cosa como la basura pues creemos que todos los desechos son reciclables, y realmente se refieren a TODOS ya que TerraCycle recolecta desde cepillos de dientes hasta pañales usados. Esta alianza permitirá fortalecer la cultura de reciclaje entre los mexicanos, a través de brigadas de participación ciudadana. Lo primero consiste en lanzar una convocatoria para confirmar brigadas de reciclaje. Esto sirve para recolectar los empaques de Pepsico, de Sabritas y Gamesa, todo esto es con el objetivo de fortalecer acciones a favor de la cultura del reciclaje el país. Los consumidores podrán registrarse en www.terracycle.com.mx y empezar a recolectar estos desechos, que una vez recibidos se reciclarán y convertirán en nuevas materias primas y así reducir la huella de carbono. Además de esto, por cada bolsa de botanas o empaque de galletas enviados a TerraCycle®, el consumidor recibirá lo equivalente a $0.25 que después podrá canjear por donativos para la organización no lucrativa de su elección. Además con esta alianza, PepsiCo refrenda su compromiso con el medio ambiente, a través de procesos novedosos e iniciativas creativas que invitan a todos y todas a colaborar para juntos cuidar el planeta. Para nosotros es un honor invitar a nuestros consumidores a formar parte de estas brigadas que ayudarán a difundir un mensaje a favor del reciclaje en todo el país, como lo comentó Mónica Bauer, Directora de Asuntos Corporativos de PepsiCo México. Es importante mencionar que las Brigadas TerraCycle han movilizado a más de 150,000 personas a eliminar el concepto de basura, mediante la participación en sus programas gratuitos de recolección. Los esfuerzos unidos de TerraCycle México, las marcas asociadas y los participantes han logrado dar una nueva vida útil a los deshechos pre-consumo y post‐consumo sumando un gran total de 1,040,399 unidades hasta el momento. Además, el esquema de reciclaje de TerraCycle ha logrado ayudar a diferentes comunidades alrededor del país a tener mejores condiciones de vida. Además esta alianza con TerraCycle permitirá a PepsiCo reforzar su Estrategia de Empaque Sustentable – que tiene como pilares Reducir, Remover, Renovar, Reciclar y Re-utilizar- , al tiempo que colabora con programas de impacto benéfico a la comunidad. TerraCycle ha tenido otras historias de éxito como la Brigada de Bebidas en Polvo de Tang®, en la cual se lograron evitar que 1.3 millones de sobres terminen en el basurero. Otra, es con la marca líder en cuidado bucal Colgate® con la Brigada de Cuidado Bucal, y a la cual los consumidores deja sorprendidos ya que no pueden creer que un cepillo de dientes pueda reciclarse. Después de todo lo que ha hecho TerraCycle, estamos seguros que esta nueva alianza con Pepsico será todo un éxito, así que ¡apoyemos el ambiente!

Birch Street and Cherry Street Elementary schools' Parent Teacher Organization discovered one man’s trash really could be another man’s treasure. A program collecting items ordinarily ending in the garbage has paid for a portion of the organization’s funding over the past seven years. Students at the two schools collected specific trash items for the “Cash for Trash” program through TerraCycle, an organization recycling items typically hard to recycle, and turning them into useable items.

Birch Street and Cherry Street elementary schools' Parent Teacher Organization discovered one man's trash could really be another man's treasure. A program collecting items ordinarily ending in the garbage has paid for a portion of the organization's funding over the past seven years.

It’s not often that an educator finds inspiration on the back of a juice box, but that’s what happened to Tim Sarych. Sarych is a special education management aid at the Mille Lacs Academy School. Sarych read about the TerraCycle, a recycling program for schools, on a box of Capri Sun juice. After a bit of research, Sarych registered the MLA with the TerraCycle program. “I knew this was a fundraiser that our school could benefit from,” he said. “It helps the environment, and it engages the students in a positive community activity.” Sarych started the project last winter and slowly introduced the plan to his co-workers. In the months that followed he brought the program up to full speed. Students and staff collect candy wrappers, cheese packaging, used printer cartridges, coffee bags, empty drink pouches, old cell phones, cereal bags and a long list of other would-be trash. They box the recyclables up and send them to TerraCycle and receive between 2 cents and a dollar an item. TerraCycle also pays the shipping costs. The material collected by TerraCycle is turned into garbage cans, school supplies, playground equipment, flower pots, back packs, and a wide variety of other items. Students and staff are bringing packaging from home as well as collecting them at the school. “Two cents an item doesn’t sound like a lot,” Sarych said. “But it adds up quickly.” To date the program has brought in about $200 dollars and kept 61 boxes of waste out of the local landfills. “Throwing away a candy wrapper is like throwing away money,” Sarych said. For more information go to TerraCycle.net, or call Tim Sarych at (320) 532-6848. Photos by Rob Passons.