The Bedford County school’s program, done in conjunction with TerraCycle, promotes recycling items not typically thought of as recyclables: drink pouches, chip bags, used writing instruments and Elmer’s glue containers.
Recycling can be gross.
Imagine encountering tobacco juice spat into an empty soda can.
Nasty.
Fifth-graders Chris Akers, 11, and Jason Williams, 10, scrunch their noses at the recollection.
Imagine the aroma of a gallon jug bearing a crusty milk residue that's traveled well past sour.
Phew.
Fifth-graders Hannah Nichols, 10, and Hannah Wood, 11, said students have learned to leave all the milk jugs capped.
And it turns out that mostly empty yogurt cups and drink pouches draw pesky swarms of fruit flies.
Bring 'em on.
None of it matters much to the recycling brigades at Huddleston Elementary School in Bedford County who don disposable vinyl gloves and brave these conditions to participate in the school's comprehensive and moneymaking recycling program.
Working with a New Jersey-based company called TerraCycle, the students recycle many items not typically collected.
Such as potato chip bags, glue sticks, baggies, cookie packages, drink pouches, candy wrappers, even writing utensils. And more.
The K-5 school began its collaboration with TerraCycle in October 2010. Since then, students at Huddleston Elementary — all 214 are invited to participate in one way or another — have kept an estimated 65,000 items out of landfills and earned nearly $1,300 for the school's PTA account.
"Anybody can help," said Amy Mallow, a teacher of fourth and fifth grade history and reading who coordinates the school's TerraCycle program. "Usually, I'm flooded with kids who want to help. They are quick to volunteer."
For one thing, volunteering can get them out of class for a little while.
But more altruistic motives play a role too.
"It helps out the community," Nichols said. "It helps the Earth and keeps it from being polluted."
TerraCycle transforms the collected packaging into new products such as tote bags, recycling bins, watering cans and backpacks.
Lauren Taylor, a spokeswoman for the company, said Huddleston Elementary is one of the top collectors in the company's nationwide programs.
That money has helped buy school supplies, contributed toward a fundraising Valentine's Ball, funded a family fitness night and allowed a theater group to visit the school to perform a program about Martin Luther King Jr.
"Our recycling efforts at Huddleston Elementary School have exceeded our expectations," said Principal Aprille Monroe.
"Our students actively help save space in landfills, energy consumption and natural resources," Monroe said. "Teachers have the added benefit of offering hands-on lessons so students understand why we recycle. Recycling has become a way of life at Huddleston and students are taking the message home to their families."
Parent volunteers help collect items to bring to school and the students sort materials consumed at school.
The custodians participate, too, by keeping an eye on kids headed toward garbage cans with a potentially recyclable item.
"The janitors will catch you if you try to sneak it into the trash," Wood said, smiling.
For more information about TerraCycle, go to www.terracycle.net.
Conforme o diretor Tom Szaky da multinacional Terracycle os lixos não recicláveis são 5 vezes superiores aos recicláveis. E completa 99% de tudo que compramos estará no lixo em 1 ano.
O Brasil gera mais de 240 mil toneladas de lixo diariamente. Apenas 2% desta quantidade é reciclada. Somente 39% das nossas cidades oferecem destino adequado ao lixo. Isto inclui o aterro sanitário.
After launching the Method Refill Brigade® in 2011,
Method, a leading innovator in premium, environmentally-conscious household and personal care products, and upcycling/recycling pioneer
TerraCycle, Inc. have now expanded the program to accept pumps, triggers, refill pouches and almost any cleaner product packaging, regardless of brand.
Schools, offices, families or individuals can collect traditionally non-recyclable cleaner packaging and send it to TerraCycle to earn money for charity gifts and donations through the newly dubbed Cleaner Packaging Brigade. The collected packaging will be turned into trash cans, coolers and other home goods.
À l’école élémentaire des Piedalloues-La Noue, les élèves de CM1, encadrés par Nathalie de Secundo, collectent les stylos usagés pour protéger la planète.
Reduce your carbon footprint while directly benefitting the zoo! The Elmwood Park Zoo Docent Council runs a program to recycle/upcycle items that typically can't go in your regular recycling collection. We've partnered with TERRACYCLE to save these items from the landfill and turn them into fabulous recycled products. The zoo earns money from the items we collect, so bring us anything and everything you can from the following list of items:
Stackable yogurt containers (any brand)
Empty toothpaste tubes
Toothbrushes (any brand, no boxes)
Chip, pretzel, or tortilla chip bags (any brand)
Candy wrappers and bags (even mini)
Energy bar wrappers
Juice pouches
Cookie wrappers, bags and plastic inserts (no boxes)
Personal care packaging (shampoo, shaving, hairspray, conditioner, soap, gels, lotions)
Tortilla wrap packaging
Brand cheese packaging
All Kashi packaging
Ink carts
Cell phones and electronics
Keyboards and computer mice
Empty tape dispensers and/or round plastic centers
All brands plastic wrapping from around paper products (paper towels, toilet tissue)
We'll be collecting your items at our Admissions counter. Thank you for your commitment to conservation and your contribution to the zoo!
Terracycle es un proyecto internacional que aterrizó en España en abril del pasado año 2011. Desde sus comienzos, Ecocampus participó en el mismo, haciéndose responsable de gestionar la recogida de material de escritura usado de toda la comunidad universitaria, y enviarlo a través de la Agencia ENVIALIA s a la sede de Terracycle. Los bolígrafos y otros objetos semejantes son complejos de reciclar… y en Terracycle se comprometen a hacerlo, obteniendo ítems suprarreciclados muy interesantes, y a donar parte de los beneficios económicos obtenidos a varias causas humanitarias.
Terracycle es un proyecto internacional que aterrizó en España en abril del pasado año 2011. Desde sus comienzos, Ecocampus participó en el mismo, haciéndose responsable de gestionar la recogida de material de escritura usado de toda la comunidad universitaria, y enviarlo a través de la Agencia ENVIALIA s a la sede de Terracycle. Los bolígrafos y otros objetos semejantes son complejos de reciclar… y en Terracycle se comprometen a hacerlo, obteniendo ítems suprarreciclados muy interesantes, y a donar parte de los beneficios económicos obtenidos a varias causas humanitarias.
After launching the Method Refill Brigade® in 2011, environmentally conscious household cleaner products company Method Home, along with upcycler/recycler
TerraCycle, Inc., has expanded the program to accept pumps, triggers, refill pouches, and almost any cleaner product packaging, regardless of brand.
Schools, offices, families or individuals can collect traditionally nonrecyclable cleaner packaging and send it to TerraCycle to earn money for charity gifts and donations through the newly dubbed
Cleaner Packaging Brigade. The collected packaging will be turned into trash cans, coolers, and other home goods.
