Every week, the Los Angeles Times runs a column by Susan Carpenter that describes a material and whether it can be recycled in curbside programs of various jurisdictions. For the past few months, the list of jurisdictions has included "Ventura." Unlike the Los Angeles area, with its many and varied curbside programs, ours are nearly identical countywide, so "Ventura" means all of Ventura County. Here is some information about whether the materials can be recycled in curbside carts here: Drink pouches: No. They are multi-material waste. Although not cost-effective on a per-ton basis, they can be mailed to Terracycle for recycling. For information, visit http://www.terracycle.net.

Have you heard of Terracycle? I have heard the blogosphere buzzing about it, so I had to check it out! Terracycle is just the coolest! Besides making cool products, they are helping the environment! Let me try and summarize Terracycle up for you. From their website: TerraCycle upcycles and recycles traditionally non-recycable waste (including drink pouches, chip bags, tooth brushes and many more) into a large variety of consumer products. These products keep waste out of our landfills and contribute to a cleaner world.TerraCycle products are available at a wide range of major retailers from Wal*Mart to Target as well as online. They are eliminating waste in the landfill and make really neat products! Win-Win situation!

In addition, the club has launched a number of recycling efforts through Terracycle.net.  Students have created collection stations throughout the school into which things like drink pouches and foil energy-bar wrappers are stuffed. The wrappers are shipped to Terracycle free of charge and are recycled and/or repurposed into new items. In addition to reducing waste, the school receives a donation of 2 cents for each item sent in. The school has collected approximately 4,000 drink pouches!

Nothing says summer more than flip flops.  The squishy sandals help you beat the heat and they can help build a new playground too.  The Old Navy stores in Spokane Valley and Moscow, Idaho are collecting used flip flops.  Collection boxes sit near the front door. . "When a customer comes in they just need to bring their old flip flops and pop them in the box.  It's Simple, " said Spokane Valley store manager Bridget Brooks.  The old sandals are mailed to TerraCycle http://www.terracycle.net in New Jersey and recycled into plastic equipment for new playgrounds.  TerraCycle also recycles used potato chip bags, candy wrappers and children's juice drink pouches.

A number of difficult-to-recycle and non-recyclable items, including nearly 500 juice pouches, will get a new lease on life, thanks to Belle Aire School’s Trash for Cash program. The Belle Aire PTA decided last fall to collect items to send to TerraCycle, a national company that makes new green consumer products out of post-consumer materials, such as backpacks created from drink pouches. TerraCycle takes in some 100 materials that would normally get thrown in the trash, and Belle Aire formed brigades to collect four of those items: juice pouches, diaper wrappings, food storage containers such as re-sealable sandwich bags, and tape dispenser rolls.

I love re-purposing things. If you think about it, as a society we are extremely wasteful. We think nothing of tossing away things that we no longer want even when they're still useful. I hate thinking about all of the juice pouches, vinyl records, old CD's, and who knows what else just sitting there in the landfill for thousands of years. Terra Cycle is a company that takes many average household items and gives them a new purpose rather than allowing them to end up in the landfill.  DwellSmart is proud to partner with TerraCycle to provide customers the opportunity to purchase from the growing range of TerraCycle products. To view their complete TerraCycle collection, please visit TerraCycle Products.

The school turned its trash into cash by sending various items to Terracycle, a recycling company. Through the program, the school has collected and saved more than 22,000 drink pouches, 200 tape dispensers and cores, more than 700 glue sticks, 4,000 chip bags, 350 lunch kits and more than 3,000 writing instruments from the landfill.