Getting Creative About Recycling

I haven't been able to stop thinking about recycling since China decided to dramatically reduce their intake of foreign recycling. A couple articles with more information here from Forbes and The Seattle Times. While short term this means more of our recyclables will end up in landfills, and long term this presents an opportunity for innovation, we should take a moment to remember "refuse", "reduce", "reuse", "repurpose", and "upcycle". I'll work to focus my 2018 posts on these concepts.

Another option is companies that will specifically take back their waste products and recycle them. And these are often products that you don't think of as traditionally recyclable. Last year, I wrote about Terracycle, a company who facilitates relationships between individuals, companies, and municipalities and the companies that will take back waste.

I see their boxes often at the entrances of stores to take back odd products like batteries and wine corks.

But for the first time ever on Friday, I saw a municipal partnership! Here I am, at a bus stop in Seattle, and see a Terracycle cigarette butt collector. (No comments about smoking, please, we all have our vices.)

What this reminds me is: think outside the box for what might be able to recycle or re-purpose, and think outside the box against traditional curbside recycling. For the city, this is pretty straightforward - they have ashtrays on many of their trash receptacles anyway. And this little box is really non-obtrusive with a roughly 9" footprint. 

Ways you can participate: 

(Beginner) Participate in Terracycle "brigades" and mail in your own items. Or, drop of your items in bins at participating businesses. 

(Intermediate) Talk to your local businesses about putting boxes in their entryways. 

(Advanced) Talk to your local administrations or community associations about installing more permanent fixtures publicly. The cigarette canisters above were a partnership with Seattle's Metropolitan Improvement District, a non-profit funded by downtown business memberships.