Archive for May, 2010
Wednesday, May 26th, 2010
It’s almost time for summer and with that comes yard work and landscaping. Some will choose to line flower beds and islands in their yard with traditional wood mulch. But there’s an alternative that homeowners may overlook – rubber mulch for landscaping.
According to some, wood mulch is not the best choice for landscaping. Why? Because wood mulch can be part of an insect problem — a common issue that no homeowner welcomes.
Wood mulch can harbor bugs, snails, snakes, earwigs and ants. Some of those pests make their way into the home. Another issue is what happens when wood gets wet or when it’s exposed to direct sun, as most surfaces are. It can decompose and so it doesn’t look good. With the decomposing you can also get a bad smell.
Rubber mulch is an innovative alternative to traditional wood mulch. It’s made from recycled rubber tires and doesn’t decompose because of water or sunlight. You also don’t have to keep bringing in new loads, once the wood breaks down and no longer looks good.
Let us help you with your next landscaping project. Go to our web site and use our rubber mulch calculator to see how much rubber mulch you need. We ship nationwide and are ready to help you with your next project.
Tags: gardening, landscaping, rubber mulch, wood chips
Posted in landscape mulch, Recycle, rubber mulch | No Comments »
Monday, May 24th, 2010
Did you the recent USAToday story about how airlines are going green? First, this shocking stat from the story: “the 30 largest airports in the country create “enough waste to equal the trash produced by cities the size of Miami or Minneapolis.”
Airports and airlines are doing more today – not only to save the earth – but to save money.
Best Green Airports
Portland International and Seattle-Tacoma International airports are strong with recycling. You know how you cannot take liquids past security? They have pouring stations so you can pour out your drink, then refill it on the other side rather than buying new.
The Seattle airport gives food that isn’t sold to local food banks. They also compost. They also encourage airlines to recycle with bins and systems to make it easy. Then they reward those who use them.
Another way they have been responsible? In 2008, Vancouver International Airport recycled or re-used 99% of it construction waste. Detroit Metropolitan Airport collects spent aircraft de-icing fluid – up to a million gallons a year. They reuse a substance in the fluid. We talked last week about how Delta recycled their seat covers.
Another trend is rather than tossing donate seating or outdated equipment they donate them to local schools or nonprofits who can use them.
There’s so much to recycle – and so much innovation you’ll be inspired – and hopefully your airport is doing their part. Sometimes all that’s needed is to ask.
Tags: airline recycling, airport recycling, Environment, Recycle
Posted in Go Green, Recycle | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 19th, 2010
“The 30 largest airports in the country create “enough waste to equal the trash produced by cities the size of Miami or Minneapolis.” – USAToday article
Matt Mahler of Tierra Ideas recently wrote about how his company is helping airlines go green. He got the idea to recycle rubber and material from airplane seat covers and curtains into hip products. Delta Airlines and the company are teaming up to save worn out airline seat covers from landfills. They turn them into bags.
“Tierra Ideas’ aim is to help companies re-think how they dispose of their unwanted materials by creating the most unique recycled products anywhere.”
Tierra Ideas also recycles bicycle tires into products like a business card holder or bike bag. They clean the tires and sew them into sheets. Then the recycled rubber sheets are then made into other products.
What is also impressive about the company is that they give back to society in other ways. The Raleigh Lions Clinic for the Blind (RLCB) is where they employ visually-impaired and blind people to make the products.
Delta has donated almost 6,000 pounds of fabric from an estimated 20,000 seat covers. Airlines have come a long way. Hotels have also gone green. Next up I’ll talk about other ways airports and airlines are stepping up their recycling efforts.
Please tell us about your efforts to go green in the comments.
Tags: airlines, Delta, hotel recyling, Recycling
Posted in Go Green, Recycle | No Comments »
Monday, May 17th, 2010
Students at New Tech High in Dallas Texas created fashion out of what others think of as garbage. The students participated in the 2010 Recycled Fashion Show as part of the state’s Earth Day celebrations.
The students really get into the competition and the resulting designs are like wearable art. One example is a dress made out of garbage bags and newspaper. Everything had to be made from recycled materials like cardboard or even magazines. The designs were modeled to a large crowd.
This is a great idea for Earth Day next year – or for school projects throughout the year. It would even work for a green prom night or dance where all of the outfits were to be made out of recycled materials.
What can you do that is creative to reduce and recycle?
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 12th, 2010
This is a simple recycling idea that I hope to see at more hotels. The New York Palace Hotel is a luxury hotel with fancy soap for each guest. But if you’ve been at hotels very often you’re aware of how much soap gets thrown away or stays in a closet somewhere. Now the hotel is doing something with that soap – it’s recycling.
The New York Palace has partnered with and Clean the World to implement the program. It will help people in third world countries where the soap will be sent. The soap will be sanitized and then given to homeless shelters and impoverished people around the world.
Clean the World estimates that the hotel will provide over 25,000 bars of soap monthly to underprivileged people in desperate need of soap, while simultaneously diverting 28 tons of landfill waste and recycling over four tons of plastic each year.
You can get involved. Donate soap and shampoo to: http://www.cleantheworld.org/contribute.asp or find out about becoming a Recycling Partner: http://www.cleantheworld.org/partners.asp
Think of the impact we could have on the world through this simple act – not only abroad but in our own country.
Save the trees with rubber mulch recycled tire surfacing.
Tags: Business, Environment, New York Palace Hotel, Recycling
Posted in Recycle, Reuse, rubber mulch | No Comments »
Monday, May 10th, 2010
It’s about that time of year for graduation and some students and schools are going green for the special event. Some colleges use recycled paper but still others take it another step further to recycling graduation gowns.
Students are recycling their graduation gowns and even their graduation hats. New products are easier on the earth. They’re not made from polyester that is made from petroleum. Some are even made from recycled plastic.
Still, about 100 schools out of 1,500 ordered the green option. Some even get the gowns washed (with biodegradeable detergent of course) and use them for another graduate.
The company Jostens offers biodegradable gowns in 6 colors. Gowns made of plastic bottles are available only in black for now. The price? Just a few dollars more than the traditional gown.
Go to the University of Vermont bookstore, and you’ll see a gown on display that shows 23 plastic bottles. That’s how many it takes to make it.
Read more at:
http://www.thestarpress.com/article/20100507/LIFESTYLE/5070311/1024/RSS04
We recycle tires into rubber mulch for many purposes from playgrounds to horse arenas. Not only is it safer but it’s better for the environment.
Is your college going green for graduation? If not, let them know you’d like the option! Please tell us about the efforts your school goes to when it comes to recycling.
Tags: Go Green, graduation, Recycle, rubber mulch
Posted in Go Green, Recycle, Reuse | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 5th, 2010
Here’s a great idea from Nevada City, California – recycle bikes, teach kids new skills and help people in need. The project is being funded by a $1.4 million anonymous donation. It includes a new building that is a being made to house a bike workshop at a local middle school. People really got into it too (wish there were pictures). At the groundbreaking ceremony, there were bicycle helmets mixed with hard hats.
The workshop will teach students how to fix old bikes for school credit. Then they’ll donate the bikes to people who need one. I hope they’ll also consider letting people borrow the bikes to ride around town. I’m sure lots of useable bikes go into landfills and this is a positive program because it gets them back into workable condition.
This city was started during the California gold rush in the 1800s and has lots of bicycle paths and a yearly bicycle race. Hopefully this idea catches on in other cities too. Emissions can be reduced by 2 % to 4% by just a 1% switch from car to bike trips. So it really helps our environment when we choose bikes over cars.
See more at http://www.theunion.com/article/20100503/BREAKINGNEWS/100509956/1053/rss
Rubberecycle recycles old tires and makes them into rubber mulch and other products.
Tags: bicycle, Recycling, rubberecycle
Posted in Go Green, Recycle, Reuse | No Comments »
Monday, May 3rd, 2010
The weak economy may have one upside: Less trash going into a landfill. Sedgwick County in Kansas says that people are throwing away 11% less trash. That’s compared to 3 years ago, just about the time when the economy tanked.
People are not recycling more, they are buying less to begin with. That means less trash to throw away in packaging. Back then people threw away about 5.4 pounds of trash per person a day and now that is down to 4.76 pounds of trash. That’s still pretty high!
What do people throw away most? Businesses throw away cardboard; residents throw away grass clippings (which are easy to recycle – hopefully your city has a green recycling plan for yard waste).
Anatomy of trash
Here’s what people throw away most
- paper 29.2 percent,
- yard waste 17.1 percent,
- plastic 14.3 percent,
- food waste 9.8 percent,
- construction and demolition materials 8 percent,
- textiles/rubber/leather, 6 percent;
- metal 3.4 percent,
- glass 2.7 percent,
- other, 9.5 percent
What struck me about this list is how much is unnecessary. Not only can we easily compost, recycle and reduce but we can do much more recycling. Rubber mulch and other products made from recycled material keeps trash out of the landfill. Not only that, but when you buy recycled products, it’s investing in our future.
Tags: Environment, Landfill, Mulch, Waste, Waste Management
Posted in Go Green, Recycle | No Comments »
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