Target and Walmart are offering dueling incentives to keep car seats out of landfills. In September, which is National Baby Safety Month, the two retailers are holding in-store trade-in events to recycle the old car seats. Target’s trade-in event returns Sept. 3 and through Sept. 13. Get a 20% coupon on select baby gear in exchange for an old car seat. On Sept. 16, Walmart kicks off its first car seat recycling event at nearly 4,000 stores. For the two-week period through Sept. 30, for trading in a used car seat, get a $30 gift card that "can be used on any item in stores or on Walmart.com," the company told USA TODAY in a statement.

Parents looking to get rid of their children’s outgrown car seats can trade them in from Sept. 16 to Sept. 30 at Walmarts across the country for a $30 gift card.   In honor of National Baby Safety Month, customers can trade in up to two car seats each. All collected car seats will then be recycled through Trenton-based TerraCycle, and each component will be diverted from the landfill.   “Safety – especially car seat safety – is a top priority for Walmart’s Baby department, so we wanted to use our size and scale to create an event that offered unprecedented access to trade in an outgrown car seat for a gift card, perfect for using on your baby’s next car seat,” said Walmart Baby Vice President Melody Richards in a prepared statement. “Sustainability is of equal importance to Walmart, so we’re happy to work with TerraCycle who will recycle every component of the car seats.”   Through the event, TerraCycle Chief Executive Officer Tom Szaky said he expected to divert the plastic equivalent of approximately 35 million water bottles from landfills.

Walmart is launching what the company's calling "the nation's largest" car seat recycling effort next month. Customers will be able to trade in used car seats at the service desk at more than four thousand Walmart stores across the country. Customers will receive a $30 Walmart gift card to use in store or online. The car seats collected will be recycled through the company "Terracycle", with components divered from landfills. The event will run from September 16th through 30th.  

Parents looking to get rid of their children’s outgrown car seats can trade them in from Sept. 16 to Sept. 30 at Walmarts across the country for a $30 gift card.   In honor of National Baby Safety Month, customers can trade in up to two car seats each. All collected car seats will then be recycled through Trenton-based TerraCycle, and each component will be diverted from the landfill.   “Safety – especially car seat safety – is a top priority for Walmart’s Baby department, so we wanted to use our size and scale to create an event that offered unprecedented access to trade in an outgrown car seat for a gift card, perfect for using on your baby’s next car seat,” said Walmart Baby Vice President Melody Richards in a prepared statement. “Sustainability is of equal importance to Walmart, so we’re happy to work with TerraCycle who will recycle every component of the car seats.”   Through the event, TerraCycle Chief Executive Officer Tom Szaky said he expected to divert the plastic equivalent of approximately 35 million water bottles from landfills.    

Customers can trade in the car seat their kid has outgrown for a $30 Walmart gift card

When my sister and I outgrew our car seats, our mom wasn't sure what to do with them. They lived in our garage for months, collecting dust as we flaunted our ability to sit in a car without a boost. I think we threw them away eventually, but unlike us, you can put yours to good use thanks to Walmart and TerraCycle's car seat recycling event. It will help the environment, as well as earn participating parents a gift card.   The event will run from Sept. 16 to Sept. 30 during National Baby Safety Month. The month is dedicated to educating parents on ways to keep infants safe, taking a different approach every year. Baby Safety Month 2019 will focus on how to properly use straps on juvenile products, according to the National Wellness Observance Calendar, so a car seat event is definitely an appropriate way to participate.   This will be Walmart's first car seat recycling event, as well as the nation's largest, according to a company press release. If you want to recycle a car seat, all you have to do is find the service desk at any participating Walmart store, where you can hand in the seat. The parts will be diverted from a landfill, and as an even greater incentive than cleaning out your storage areas, you'll receive a $30 Walmart gift card to be used in store or online for products for your baby for recycling a seat. Helping the environment and getting some cash? Yes please. Walmart is a safety seat destination for many because they sell hundreds of models, so it's a natural step for it to establish itself as a place to get rid of old seats too. As Melody Richards, Vice President, Walmart Baby, said in the same press release, "Safety – especially car seat safety – is a top priority for Walmart’s Baby department, so we wanted to use our size and scale to create an event that offered unprecedented access to trade in an outgrown car seat for a gift card – perfect for using on your baby’s next car seat." Meanwhile, their partner in the event, TerraCycle, is an organization that works with manufacturers to recycle "difficult-to-recycle" materials, like car seats, that would normally be thrown away, as the press release explained. So TerraCycle brings the eco-friendly strategy, while Walmart provides parents a place to put those no-longer-useful car seats. It's a match made in recycling heaven.   It sounds like a pretty sweet deal, but there are a few caveats. Walmart is limiting the trade-in to two gift cards per family. So even if you bring five car seats with you to the store, the most Walmart cash you'll be able to get is $60. The store also won't be accepting booster seats during the promotion, so you'll have to find another way to get those out of the garage. And not all Walmart stores will be involved in the event, but you can find out if your store is participating online. But the event allows you to help the environment and clear out the garage in one fell swoop, so it's worth a trip to the store. Here's to autumn cleaning.