It might not make sense to say the world runs on carbon, but almost everything the world runs on—like gasoline and coal—emits millions of tons of carbon. Ideally, the world will one day function with very little or no carbon emitted, but there’s no switch that can be flipped to immediately make the world carbon … Continue reading
We’ve all been there before, haven’t we? On the go, hungry, with no time to sit down for a proper meal. Some time ago, entrepreneurs realized there was a market for on-the-go food, and we’ve been living in a nation filled with fast food joints ever since. Documentaries Super Size Me and Fast Food Nation … Continue reading
Wednesday, June 5 is National Running Day, a cross-country (pun intended) celebration of the world’s oldest sport. As it says on the National Running Day website, the day is when runners everywhere declare their passion for running, no matter how long or how fast they may run. Running is an all-inclusive sport because it requires … Continue reading
Most people have, at the very least, a basic understanding of what’s acceptable to be recycled in a curbside bin and what is not. The most obvious recyclable items are paper products, glass bottles and aluminum cans. Plastics are commonly known to be recyclable as well, but they’re a little trickier. Plastics like polyethylene terephthalate … Continue reading
You’ve already read our story on Spring Greening - now take a look at our infographic. Are you a spring greener? Leave us a comment with your best spring greening ideas.
Recycling is necessary if we’re to preserve our planet, but when recycling becomes a hassle, many people say, “forget it.” For example, cigarette butts are recyclable, and although the process is fairly simple (collect cigarettes, seal them in proper packaging, and ship to TerraCycle), the vast majority of smokers don’t bother to recycle their butts. … Continue reading
Solid Waste Collection Agency of Lake County (SWALCO) is working toward changing the mindset of Lake County, Ill., residents. Without thinking twice, many people trash household items like shampoo bottles, food containers, utensils, plant pots or broken electronics. Such items may appear to be useless at first glance, but as SWALCO is stressing in their … Continue reading
California Governor Jerry Brown has an important piece of legislation on his desk, a new law which limits the textile recycling options for California residents. We are in full support of California’s efforts to achieve zero waste, aiming to reduce waste going into landfills by 75% by 2020. A big portion of this waste going into landfills is textiles, more than 880,000 tons were sent to California landfills in 2008 alone. According to EPA, the current textile recycling efforts collect only 15% of the total textile waste and 85% makes its way to landfills.
We all know to increase any kind of recycling we need to make it more convenient. Collection bins provide a convenient and eco-friendly way for people to rid themselves of unwanted clothes, shoes, books, home electronics and much more. The bins keep these items in the use cycle and out of landfills. In addition, many non-profits rely on funds generated by collection bins to fund programs that benefit the community.
But the bill, AB 1978, is an anti-environment, anti-business, and anti-charity bill. It will impose onerous limitations on the placement of collection bins. s a market leader in the textile collection industry, USAgain has been an advocate for the regulation of un-permitted bins for many years. Unfortunately, however, AB 1978 is a flawed and excessive bill that will have a negative impact on a wide range of businesses, charities and their beneficiaries across this state.
This legislation would make it much harder for organizations like USAgain, D.A.R.E. and many others to place bins across the State. Collection bins provide a convenient and eco-friendly way for people to rid themselves of unwanted clothes, shoes, books, home electronics and much more. The bins keep these items in the use cycle and out of California landfills. In addition, many non-profits rely on funds generated by collection bins to fund programs that benefit the community.
We’re joining the California Resource Recovery Association, the Northern California Recycling Association, the California Police Chiefs Association, D.A.R.E., other non-profits and local businesses in opposing AB 1978, which is on the Governor Jerry Brown’s desk – hopefully awaiting a veto from him.
Please support California’s green businesses, charities and non-profits, visit Change.org to sign the petition asking Governor Brown to veto the bill.
Thailand is focused on launching a new market in the green textile industry. The Thailand Textile Institute is responsible for the task of developing this project to realize the objective of sustainability. The aim is to develop 13 projects in the current year to attain the goal of “green products.” Presently, Thailand ships more than … Continue reading
On April 9, USAgain and IKEA Schaumburg will be partnering in a community recycling event. The idea of this event is not only to facilitate recycling in Schaumburg but to rally an entire community around that same idea. We hope the event can bring together people from all over Chicagoland and show them what we can … Continue reading
