The end of summer is rapidly approaching and so are those Labor Day parties and gatherings.   Solo cups, those red or blue disposable plastic cups you use for parties and barbecues to make cleanup a snap, are not recyclable curbside or at drop-off sites anywhere in Northwest Indiana. Even worse, once thrown in the garbage, it is estimated that each cup will take hundreds of years to break down in a landfill.   On the bottom of the cups, you’ll note the recycling symbol, or “chasing arrows,” with a “6” in the center, which indicates they are made from polystyrene. Many people believe the chasing arrows symbol designates a product is acceptable for the recycle bin; however, this is not the case. That mark with the number is solely to identify the type of plastic from which it is made!   Because the chasing arrows symbol has been widely misinterpreted over the years, there is a movement to replace the chasing arrows with a solid triangle to avoid this confusion. On many items, you’ll already see the change.   The types of materials that are recyclable curbside in Northwest Indiana may be different from the materials accepted for recycling anywhere else in the United States, because what’s accepted depends on the capabilities of the materials recovery facility (MRF) that ultimately sorts, bales and sells them.   • If the MRF cannot process the material or product, then it is not recyclable curbside in your area. • If the MRF cannot sell the resulting baled material because there is no market for it, then the material is not recyclable curbside in your area.   In Northwest Indiana, our recyclables go to sorting facilities in Illinois that have determined there are no markets for #6 plastic; no one wants to purchase it, and it’s not profitable for the MRF to process it and ship it elsewhere.   Solo cups that end up at the MRF ultimately get buried in a landfill. Inappropriate material that goes to sorting facilities can contaminate valuable materials, add time and expense to material processing time and drive up recycling fees.   Because a material isn’t recyclable curbside doesn’t mean it’s not recyclable at all. Many times, there are other places you can take the material where it can be recycled.   In the case of Solo cups, a company called TerraCycle will accept and recycle Solo cups. Participants can even turn Solo cup recycling into a fundraising opportunity. Visit www.terracycle.com for details.   In addition, area Subaru dealerships are working with TerraCycle and are now accepting disposable cups for recycling:   Castle Subaru, 5020 US Highway 6, Portage; 219-764-5020 International Subaru of Merrillville, 1777 West US Route 30; 855-315-4266   If you are looking for an alternative to Solo cups at your event, try offering reusable cups or serve drinks in their original containers: bottles and cans that are recyclable. If you want to split hairs, you can offer plastic disposable cups that aren’t Solo cups or a cup that is not #6 plastic, as that is the material that really isn’t recyclable here in Northwest Indiana.   Events create a lot of waste. If you are concerned about your event’s impact on the planet, remember the slogan “Reduce, reuse, recycle, RETHINK!”   REDUCE: Don’t buy products like Solo cups. Reduce your consumption of disposable products.   REUSE: Will reusable cups, plates and utensils work? What would your guests say if you asked them to bring their own cups (BYOC)?   RECYCLE: If reusable items just aren’t convenient, offer products that can be recycled, like cans and bottles. Be sure to offer recycling bins at your event so your guest can recycle. We can help!   RETHINK: your event; don’t plan, buy or do things just because you’ve done it that way in the past. Change can be good; good for you and the planet!   For more information on Porter County Recycling & Waste Reduction, call 219-465-3819 or visit www.PorterCountyRecycling.org. In the case of Solo cups, a company called TerraCycle will accept and recycle Solo cups. Participants can even turn Solo cup recycling into a fundraising opportunity. Visit www.terracycle.com for details.   In addition, area Subaru dealerships are working with TerraCycle and are now accepting disposable cups for recycling: • Castle Subaru, 5020 US Highway 6, Portage; 219-764-5020 • International Subaru of Merrillville, 1777 West US Route 30; 855-315-4266  

If you’re an educator who’d like to keep all those markers your kids use out of landfills, take note!   There’s a free recycling program from Crayola that allows students to collect and repurpose used markers from classrooms in K-12 schools across the country and in parts of Canada. The Crayola ColorCycle initiative is designed to help both teachers and students learn about sustainability and make a positive impact on the environment.   To participate, you simply need to sign up your school, collect markers, and send them in. The four easy steps are outlined on the ColorCycle web page.   First, inform your school’s administrators or parent-teacher organization about the program. Any school, kindergarten through 12th grade, in the contiguous 48 United States, is eligible to participate. Some areas of Canada are eligible as well. You can check if your Canadian postal code is covered here.  An adult representative can register the school to participate online. Next, set up a collection site where people can drop off used markers at your school. The markers should then be packed in a cardboard box that has minimal outer markings. Only include markers in the box. All brands of markers are accepted, so they don’t just need to be Crayola markers.   Ensure that each box weighs about 8-10 pounds, and secure it with packing tape. Crayola suggests a minimum of 100 markers and a maximum of 40 pounds per box. The packages should be affixed with a FedEx shipping label, which you can print online. They will be picked up by FexEx Ground, with shipping costs covered by Crayola.   Markers are often not allowed by local community recycling efforts, which more commonly collect paper, plastic, and glass. That makes this program all the more welcome. So what happens to the markers? According to Crayola, the recyclables are sent to a facility that converts old markers into energy as well as wax compounds for asphalt and roofing shingles.   “The process repurposes the entire marker, regardless of the different kinds of plastics or how they are assembled,” the FAQ says.   One school participating in the program is Geneva Middle School in Geneva, Illinois, where a group of students known as “The Green Team” is collecting markers through the program. They also have a deposit box to collect empty chip bags in school’s cafeteria. The club was organized last year in a sixth-grade science class.   Last month, the club brought their first load of empty chip bags to Gerald Ford Subaru in North Aurora, which has a recycling box for TerraCycle, a private recycling business. The school plans to continue the program when the school year gets underway again. If your classroom needs new markers, teachers can purchase Crayola Classpacks, which include a color palette of educator-preferred hues, as well as other bulk items at affordable prices.   We hope plenty of schools are signing up this year!  

If you’re an educator who’d like to keep all those markers your kids use out of landfills, take note!   There’s a free recycling program from Crayola that allows students to collect and repurpose used markers from classrooms in K-12 schools across the country and in parts of Canada. The Crayola ColorCycle initiative is designed to help both teachers and students learn about sustainability and make a positive impact on the environment.   To participate, you simply need to sign up your school, collect markers, and send them in. The four easy steps are outlined on the ColorCycle web page.   First, inform your school’s administrators or parent-teacher organization about the program. Any school, kindergarten through 12th grade, in the contiguous 48 United States, is eligible to participate. Some areas of Canada are eligible as well. You can check if your Canadian postal code is covered here.  An adult representative can register the school to participate online.   Next, set up a collection site where people can drop off used markers at your school. The markers should then be packed in a cardboard box that has minimal outer markings. Only include markers in the box. All brands of markers are accepted, so they don’t just need to be Crayola markers. Ensure that each box weighs about 8-10 pounds, and secure it with packing tape. Crayola suggests a minimum of 100 markers and a maximum of 40 pounds per box. The packages should be affixed with a FedEx shipping label, which you can print online. They will be picked up by FexEx Ground, with shipping costs covered by Crayola.   Markers are often not allowed by local community recycling efforts, which more commonly collect paper, plastic, and glass. That makes this program all the more welcome. So what happens to the markers? According to Crayola, the recyclables are sent to a facility that converts old markers into energy as well as wax compounds for asphalt and roofing shingles. “The process repurposes the entire marker, regardless of the different kinds of plastics or how they are assembled,” the FAQ says. One school participating in the program is Geneva Middle School in Geneva, Illinois, where a group of students known as “The Green Team” is collecting markers through the program. They also have a deposit box to collect empty chip bags in school’s cafeteria. The club was organized last year in a sixth-grade science class.   Last month, the club brought their first load of empty chip bags to Gerald Ford Subaru in North Aurora, which has a recycling box for TerraCycle, a private recycling business. The school plans to continue the program when the school year gets underway again. If your classroom needs new markers, teachers can purchase Crayola Classpacks, which include a color palette of educator-preferred hues, as well as other bulk items at affordable prices. We hope plenty of schools are signing up this year!

Students took their first load last week to Gerald Subaru of North Aurora, which has a recycling box from TerraCycle. They also have started recycling markers through Crayola ColorCycle, since those also cannot be recycled through the city. The group hopes to continue their efforts next year!

Tom Szaky, president and CEO of international recycling company TerraCycle recently gave the keynote address at the 7th annual Responsible Business Summit New York. Szaky addressed how companies are increasingly looking towards sustainable innovations to change environmental, social and governmental risks into workable business opportunities.

Join Subaru and show your love for the earth by recycling hard-to-recycle materials like snack wrappers and coffee cups at the TerraCycle Bins in Colorado Subaru Locations. Find out more at www.TerraCycle.com/Subaru.

Once collected, the waste is broken down and separated by material. Plastics are cleaned and pelletized, paper based waste and organic waste (such as coffee grounds) are composted and metals are melted down. Click here to learn more about TerraCycle's recycling process.

Join Subaru and show your love for the earth by recycling hard-to-recycle materials like snack wrappers and coffee cups at the TerraCycle Bins in Colorado Subaru Locations. Find out more at www.TerraCycle.com/Subaru. THIS INTERVIEW HAS COMMERCIAL CONTENT. PRODUCTS AND SERVICES FEATURED APPEAR AS PAID ADVERTISING.

ONE GOOD RESIN I've got a local angle for this blog post. The grade school that my kids attended — Mater Dei Academy in Wickliffe, Ohio — is featured in a national TV commercial for its plastic recycling efforts. MDA students recently collected almost 300 pounds of polypropylene bottle caps and lids, marked with recycling code 5, for a recycling program sponsored by carmaker Subaru and by Terracycle, a recycling firm based in Trenton, N.J. For their efforts, students are receiving a Buddy Bench, which is a bench for kids who are looking for someone to play with. It will be dedicated at the school on May 3. The bench is made from recycled plastics. A tree planting also will be part of the ceremony. Another local grade school, Our Lady of the Lake in Euclid, Ohio, also had a recycling drive and will receive a similar bench. The 30-second commercial is part of the Subaru Loves the Earth campaign and includes MDA students and Principal Joanie Klemens recycling snack bags. It first aired April 19 on USA Network and on April 21 on NBC. The commercial will debut on SYFY Network on April 24 and will appear on NBC Universal-branded stations for at least six weeks. "At our school, we teach the kids to care about the environment," Klemens says in the commercial, adding that the Buddy Bench "is teaching our kids to not only be kind to the environment, but also to each other." MDA worked on the recycling effort after being contacted by Patty Fowler, who leads the Keep Wickliffe Beautiful community group. The program "lets the kids see that their work is going for something," Fowler said in an April 22 phone interview. MDA used Zero Waste boxes provided by TerraCycle and Subaru for the project. The boxes encourage customers, employees and community partners to recycle items that are commonly thought of as hard-to-recycle, including snack wrappers and bags, disposable cups and lids, and coffee and tea capsules, Subaru officials said in a news release. The collected waste streams will be turned into useful, high quality recycled products, such as park benches, picnic tables, and playground materials. More than 500 locations were involved in the campaign nationwide. "At Subaru, we feel it's our personal responsibility to protect Earth's natural wonders and encourage our retailers and customers to engage in smart environmental practices, simply because it's the right thing to do," Subaru of America CEO Thomas Doll said.