Grist Magazine: Ask Umbra’s Advice on Battery Recycling

Filed under: Earth911 - March 24, 2009

Every year, more than 18,000 tons of “dead” batteries are tossed into landfills, mercilessly left there to ooze heavy metals into water and soil. Luckily, this is a problem with a simple solution—and Umbra’s advice will recharge you.

Video available at http://www.grist.org/gristTV/umbra/2009/03/24/

Show notes: To find out more about how and where to recycle batteries, visit Rechargeable Battery Recycling and Earth 911.

“Ask Umbra” is the first video series produced by GristTV. Look for new video tips for greening your life from Umbra nearly every week.

Watch it on the go! Subscribe to GristTV video podcasts via iTunes.

Chicago Parent: Build a Greener Future

Filed under: Earth911 - March 20, 2009

When you become a parent, your life revolves around your child’s future. You save for their college tuition. You expose them to career possibilities. You teach them skills that last a lifetime. You want your child’s life to be happy and healthy.

Being environmentally conscientious is just another way of planning for your child’s bright future. Annie Lawson, an environmentally aware mother of four in Grayslake, lives by a basic lesson of Native American culture: “The Earth is not ours to own, it is on loan to us from our children’s children.”

Here are 10 steps to take:

1 Walk clean. One of the best ways to see all the Earth has to offer is to get out and enjoy it. Make plans this weekend to go for a walk or bike ride. Bring along a garbage bag and a pair of gloves. Pick up all the trash you find. Not only are you helping to clean a little part of the planet but the whole family is getting some exercise.

2 Cultivate a green thumb. Plant something, anything. Plants naturally clean the air around them. If you have a yard, try planting a small garden. Start with something easy or something your family enjoys eating. If you only have a balcony, try growing a potted herb garden. If you only have a window, try a hardy plant, like ivy.

3 Trash your food. As a family, make a garbage can composter. You will need a plastic garbage can with a tight fitting lid and a water source. Start by poking or drilling into the side of the can, making small ventilation holes, about 50 to 100 throughout. Your compost needs a combination of brown materials, which include cardboard, newspaper and dried leaves and green materials, such as food scraps and grass. Add alternating layers of green and brown materials in equal proportion. The mixture should be damp, so add water as necessary. Keep the lid on and roll the can on its side at least once a week. To see an easy to follow video, check out http://video.about.com/greenliving/Homemade-Compost-Bin.htm.

4 Take time to read The Lorax. Thirty-eight years ago, Dr. Seuss wrote an emotional story of the Lorax, who speaks for the trees. He tried to teach us an important lesson, which we are still working on today. Dr. Seuss’s words invite children to take action, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not!”

5 Recycling leftovers. Lawson saves even the smallest amount of food leftovers such as plain rice, vegetables and pasta in the freezer. Then about once a month, she makes a large pot of soup made from her recycled leftovers.

6 One man’s trash. Instead of trashing packaging containers, give them new life as an art project. Be sure that all materials are clean and free of sharp edges. Large containers, like milk and juice jugs, can be cut, decorated and become the perfect home for a plant. Metal cans and sturdy boxes can turn into pencil holders and jewelry boxes. Cardboard tubes can be converted into rain sticks, napkin rings or party poppers. Egg cartons transform into butterflies or seedling starters. All you need is your imagination and the ability to see beyond the garbage.

7 Dear Mr. President. Does your daughter worry about the amount of garbage being thrown away every day? Is your son coming up with ways to help the endangered gray wolf? Encourage your child to write to people in power. This is a great way for your child to practice letter writing skills and to learn that one voice, no matter how small, can make a difference.

8 Recycle relay. Set up a recycling scavenger hunt. Find a list of everything your local recycling center picks up or allows to be delivered. Go to www.Earth911.com, a comprehensive recycling Web site, and type in #1 plastic (PETE) and your zip code. Click on your favorite recycling place. Print out a list of all the items it recycles. Then go through your house on a hunt for an example of each item on the list. Not only will this familiarize you and your family with all the things that you can recycle, you now have a convenient list to tape on the front of your recycling can.

9 Family mascot. According to www.conservation.org, one species is pushed to extinction every 20 minutes. As a family, choose an endangered animal to become your mascot. Surf the Web, bike to the library to research the history and why your animal is endangered. Brainstorm ways that your family can help. Share your information with others. Support foundations that support your mascot.

10 Take a pledge. As a family, make a pledge to do one positive action every day to help make the Earth a cleaner, healthier place to live. It does not have to be big, just something little built into your daily routine will do nicely. Before your family knows it, it will be your “future” lifestyle.

Go paperless

Some forward-thinking companies offer paperless statements sent right to your e-mail. If you come across a company that does not offer this service, complain. It adds to paper waste, as well as the cost to you with postage, ink and paper.

Junk junk mail

Tired of going to your mail box, just to find junk? Register at Mail Preference Service at www.dmaconsumers.org/cgi/offmailinglist to reduce the amount of junk mail you receive. It costs a dollar, but is well worth it. As for the rest, recycle it.

Rethink dinner

Before opening the refrigerator, the biggest energy consumer in the kitchen, think about all the ingredients that you need so you only have to open it once. (Think the same way when putting away groceries.) If your meal is going to bake for an hour or longer, don’t bother to preheat the oven. If you do need to preheat, no longer than 10 minutes is needed. Choose the right pots for your meal. Pots that are too big waste water and energy.

Just one please

By asking for exactly what you need, you will be creating no unnecessary waste. If you only need one napkin, ketchup or salt packet, only take one. If you are given more, give them back and explain why. On average, each person in the U.S. throws away six napkins a day. If we all used just one fewer a day for a year, we could fill the entire Empire State Building with the napkins we saved.

Amber Beutel is a teacher, private tutor and mother living in Grayslake.

Atlanta Journal Constitution: Confused About What to Recycle?

Filed under: Earth911 - March 15, 2009

By the Good Housekeeping Institute

Every day, the average American produces 4 1/2 pounds of trash—75 percent of which is recyclable. While rules vary from town to town (check yours on Earth911.com), this guide from the experts at Good Housekeeping will make doing the right thing easier. Here’s what to recycle—and how to do it:

Paper: Most programs take it all, from cardboard to newsprint, office paper to envelopes, and junk mail to magazines—no matter how glossy.

Don’t bother removing staples, paper clips, or spirals in notebooks. They’ll be filtered out.

Leave out: Anything that’s food-stained, like pizza boxes, because the oils can contaminate an entire load. Ditto on plastic-coated paper plates and cups (though flattened milk cartons are generally OK).

Also out: brightly colored, dye-saturated paper and books.

Plastic: The basic rule of thumb: If it’s a bottle with a neck that’s smaller than the body and has a “1″ or “2″ symbol on the bottom, nearly every recycling program will accept it.

Leave out: The caps—they’re made of a different type of plastic and can mess up a whole batch.

Items such as yogurt, margarine, deli tubs and plastic cutlery frequently get turned down, too. Consider washing and reusing them instead.

Glass: Bottles and jars are good to go once you rinse them and throw away (or recycle) their caps; labels will burn off at the plant.

Leave out: Some programs won’t take certain colors of glass. And treated glass, like broken plates, regular incandescent light bulbs, and window or windshield glass, has to go in the regular trash.

Metal: All of this belongs in the bin: soda, juice and soup cans; washed-off aluminum pie tins and foil; and bottle caps, wire coat hangers, empty aerosol cans and other scrap metal.

Leave out: Batteries or electronics.

Plastic bags: More and more retailers have in-store bins to collect shopping bags and any clean plastic bags labeled 2 or 4. Find a local spot at plasticbagrecycling.org.

Paint: Many programs will take paint cans, even with a small amount of paint dried inside.

If you have several gallons left over, give them to a charity like Habitat for Humanity, or see if your town has an upcoming paint-recycling drive (find out on Earth911.com).

CFL light bulbs: Unlike old-school incandescents, these can’t be trashed, because they contain a small amount of mercury.

Home Depot, Office Depot and IKEA accept old (though not broken) bulbs.

Cellphones: Your options: manufacturer or service-provider take-back programs, drop-in bins at stores that sell them or charity donation. For a charity, try National Coalition Against Domestic Violence; ncadv.org.

TVs: While cathode-ray tubes don’t have much recycling value, a few manufacturers (Sony, Samsung, LG) will take theirs back.

Best Buy will haul away an old set if you buy one there; Office Depot accepts small sets for $15.

Other electronics: PCs, MP3 players, cameras and more can be traded online for cash at myboneyard.com or for a store credit at radioshack.com/tradein or officedepot.com/tech tradein.

These chains and others also recycle, though they may charge a small fee ($5 to $15).

Where to write: Good Housekeeping Reports, c/o King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019

REDUCE & REUSE

Good Housekeeping says these simple swaps can make a big difference.

Try: Microfiber cloth Why: One can take the place of 60 rolls of paper towels before needing replacing.

Try: Travel mug Why: Bring it to your favorite java joint, since most places will fill it for you, often at a discount.

Try: Plastic jugs Why: They’re much more recyclable than milk or juice cartons.

Try: Rechargeable batteries Why: Few recycling programs take one-use batteries, but rechargeables can and should be recycled.

Try: Reusable dry-cleaning bag Why: Waste less plastic with the Clothesnik reusable bag ($30 plus shipping, reuseniks.com).

Try: Buying big Why: For foods in hard-to-recycle tubs, get the largest-size container and dole into smaller reusable ones.

Springfield News-Leader: Put a Little Eco-friendly Green in Your Wardrobe

Filed under: Earth911 - March 13, 2009

By Juliana Goodwin

This St. Patrick’s Day, wear green.

As in earth-friendly green.

We’re talking about eco-fashions, everything from organic cottons to bamboo shirts to handbags made from recycled materials.

This isn’t a niche market anymore. Green clothes can be found at small stores and big box retailers such as Wal-Mart, Kmart and Target.

Jennifer Berry, manager, public and strategic relations of Earth911.com in Scottsdale Ariz., says there is no one definition of “green clothing,” but several trends have emerged.

Some companies, like Patagonia, use recycled materials in their products. The company uses fleece made from post- consumer recycled plastic soda bottles. According to its Web site, in 13 years, it has saved 86 million soda bottles from the trash heap.

For others, green fashions are made from recycled materials, such as a purse made out of a recycled tire (available at Anna Sophia’s in Springfield).

“I carry a lot of things that are recycled. … Fair trade and recycled go hand-in- hand,” says Karen Eagles, owner of Anna Sophia’s.

Other green clothes are made with organic fibers.

“Anything made organically is great because it doesn’t use pesticides and doesn’t have the same environmental footprint,” Berry says.

According to the Organic Exchange, a Lubbock, Texas- based non-profit committed to expanding organic agriculture, organic production of cotton increased 152 percent worldwide between 2007-2008.

India leads the world in organic cotton production, but the United States is the sixth- largest producer.

David Crump, owner of Global Fayre in Springfield, discovered a big and unexpected market for the organic cotton fair- trade onesies he carries.

“It wasn’t a market we were trying to chase; it just turned out there was a market there, so we will be expanding that as the year goes on,” he says.

Some parents believe organic cotton is better for their infant’s skin, says Crump.

Anne Rodgers, spokeswoman at the Target headquarters in Minneapolis, Minn., says Target offers several lines of organic baby clothes at select stores and online. The onesies are available in the Springfield store.Target recently introduced a line of women’s sleepwear, available in certain stores and at Target.com. The line is expanding in early April and will be available at most stores.

“It’s been at Target the past several months, but guests are responding really well so we’re expanding next month,” Rodgers says.

Crump also carries adult organic cotton shirts and clothes that are a cotton/ bamboo mix.

Crump says hemp and bamboo are likely the eco-clothes of the future. Both are high- yielding crops and are easier on the environment, he says.

“The bamboo has been really popular because it’s really soft and hard- wearing so it’s good all around,” Crump says.

According to Tees for Change, a company that produces eco- clothes, bamboo is fast-growing, needs no pesticides and is 100 percent biodegradable.

Aside from buying organic, consumers are looking to companies to be sustainable, says Berry.

At Dynamic Earth, customers can find both organic cotton clothes and sustainable companies, according to Heather Bagge, a buyer at Dynamic Earth, which sells camping and outdoor gear and clothing.

Bagge has seen a spike in interest in eco-friendly clothes in the past few years, but says it’s a natural fit because their customers tend to care about the environment.

One popular brand they carry is prAna.

“The whole company tries to live mindfully,” Bagge says.

As well as working on its own sustainability, the company supports wind farms and clean- energy projects globally to help support ongoing development of clean energy sources.

When it comes to eco-clothes, more companies and consumers are looking at the whole picture, says Berry.

“Sustainable business operations overall, maybe shipping, maybe shipping without packing peanuts. Customers are looking for a whole package in sustainability rather than a particular product,” Berry says.

What makes clothing good for the planet?

Jennifer Berry, manager, public and strategic relations for Earth911.com, points to a number of things:

The Salt Lake Tribune: Recycling Made Simple

Filed under: Earth911 - March 11, 2009

Every day, the average American produces four and a half pounds of trash—75 percent of which is recyclable. Although rules vary from town to town (check yours on Earth911.com), this guide from the experts at Good Housekeeping will make doing the right thing easier.

Paper: Most programs take it all, from cardboard to newsprint, office paper to envelopes, and junk mail to magazines—no matter how glossy. Staples, paper clips and spirals in notebooks will be filtered out.

Leave out: Anything that’s food-stained, such as pizza boxes, because the oils can contaminate an entire load. Ditto on plastic-coated paper plates and cups (though flattened milk cartons are generally OK). Also out are brightly colored, dye-saturated paper and books.

Plastic: If it’s a bottle with a neck that’s smaller than the body and has a “1″ or “2″ symbol on the bottom, nearly every recycling program will accept it.

Leave out: The caps—they’re made of a different type of plastic and can mess up a whole batch. Items such as yogurt, margarine, deli tubs and plastic cutlery frequently get turned down, too. Consider washing and reusing them instead.

Glass: Bottles and jars are good to go once you rinse them and throw away (or recycle) their caps; labels will burn off at the plant.

Leave out: Some programs won’t take certain colors of glass, and treated glass, such as broken plates, regular incandescent light bulbs, and window or windshield glass, has to go in the regular trash.

Metal: All of this belongs in the bin—soda, juice, and soup cans; washed-off aluminum pie tins and foil; and bottle caps, wire coat hangers, empty aerosol cans and other scrap metal.

Leave out: Batteries or electronics.

Plastic bags: More and more retailers have in-store bins to collect shopping bags and any clean plastic bags labeled 2 or 4. Find a local spot at plasticbagrecycling.org.

On another matter: To find the best-tasting yogurt variety, testers at the Good Housekeeping Research Institute sampled 16 vanilla brands in two categories—nonfat and low-fat. Stonyfield Farms, a New Hampshire-based company, swept both categories in the taste tests.

Portland Green Living Examiner: Stop Unwanted Phone Book Deliveries

Filed under: Earth911 - March 10, 2009

By Maureen Mackey

Today’s tip is about reducing the flow of unwanted paper that streams into our homes. One way to do that is to stop the delivery of multiple, unwanted phone books to our doors.

My own recent move across town showed me how bad this problem of proliferating phone books has become. In less than a month six separate directories were delivered at our new address, all shrink-wrapped and dumped on our front porch.

The books are unnecessary, because like many people I rarely use a phone book now. When I need to find a local store or service I go straight to the Internet for free online directories, such as Dex Knows, or Portland City Search if I also want to read a review.

The good news is that now I —and you, too— can opt out of receiving paper phone books at home or work, anywhere in the United States.

Just go to YellowPagesGoesGreen.org to put an end to unsolicited phone book delivery. YPPG is a grassroots organization dedicated to stopping the automatic delivery of phone books to those of us who don’t want or need them.

According to the YPGG website, 540 million directories are printed in the US each year, which translates to almost two books for each person in the country. Those books require about 1.6 billion pounds of paper, obtained by cutting down 19 million trees. And the processing of all those phone directories further squanders 7.2 million barrels of oil, and 3.2 billion kilowatt-hours of energy.

So spare the trees and save yourself the phone book clutter. Opt out of receiving phone books if you can do without them. I just did it—it’s easy!

But if you still prefer to consult paper phone books, remember to recycle them when new ones are delivered. Portland-area garbage haulers allow you to recycle your phone books along with other recyclables at the curb.

For more info: Find out how to recycle phone books in your neighborhood at Earth 911.

Dallas Morning News: Sample Questions on Anything You Ever Wanted To Know

Filed under: Earth911 - March 5, 2009

Here’s a sampling of questions posed and answers offered on Anything You Ever Wanted To Know.

Q: What are the white-painted crosses on the pavement on the sides of the road used for?

A: They are used to align roadways in satellite photos.

Q: What is the small Japanese-looking tree on the north side of Interstate 30 between Arlington and Fort Worth? I have often seen it decorated, and there is a small bench beneath it.

A: The tree was originally decorated by Carla Christian. When she could no longer climb the hill to decorate it, other families took her place. A children’s book has been written about the tree called The Homeless Christmas Tree (thehomelesschristmastree.com).

Q: I have seen watch advertisements where all the watches are set to 10:10. Why is this?

A: It is the best way to frame the logo of the watchmaker, just below the 12. It also does not block the date window or other features on the face of the watch.

Q: Is cinnamon considered a spice?

A: Herbs are taken from the leaves of a plant, while a spice is taken from the seed, bark root or flower. Cinnamon comes from the bark of a tree, and is therefore a spice.

Q: What are the tall cylinders I have seen at some street intersections, usually tied to a utility pole?

A: The tank is hooked to communications lines and the pressure of the gas in the tank is pushing moisture out of the telephone or communication lines.

Q: What is the oldest building in Dallas that is still in use?

A: The oldest is the Ahab Bowen Home at 2614 Boll St. near McKinney Avenue in Uptown. It dates back to about 1874 and is now a vintage clothing store. When Ahab Bowen began farming the surrounding land in 1867, it was well outside the Dallas city limits.

Q: Where can I recycle VHS tapes?

A: Visit Earth911.com and search using your ZIP code and “VHS.” This site will give you a list of places where you can recycle the tapes (or anything else).

Q: What is the large, odd-looking structure at the south entrance of D/FW Airport?

A: It’s a VOR ground station—a radio transmitter for use in aircraft navigation. Oddly enough, it has no connection to D/FW flights. It’s used by aircraft traveling overhead. Another is near Walnut Hill Road and Interstate 35E.

New York Times: Recycling Gadgets When They Go Pffft…

Filed under: Earth911 - March 4, 2009

By Julie Scelfo

AMERICANS discarded 2.25 million tons of computers, printers, cellphones and other electronics in 2007. About 82 percent ended up in landfills. The Green Home called up Jason Linnell, the executive director of the National Center for Electronics Recycling, a nonprofit group based in West Virginia, to find out how we can recycle our old gadgets instead.

The average American household has 24 electronic devices, according to the Consumer Electronics Association. And each will eventually get thrown out or be replaced. Can all those gadgets be recycled?

Yes, unless you have a prehistoric television with a wood console around it. Most household electronics can be recycled because they have metal and other materials that are of value to recyclers. But the longer you hold on to your device, the less of a chance it has of being reused.

Really, how come?

If it’s still working, the device can be given to someone in need. Or, if the item utilizes current technology, the working parts can be resold and installed into other devices. But if it’s just gathering dust in your closet, the materials are not being put to productive use.

Where should people take their old electronics?

It depends on where you live. Some towns and cities sponsor drop-off centers or periodic collection events. You can find information about where to go at our Web site, electronicsrecycling.org. Other sites include MyGreenElectronics.org, which is sponsored by the Consumer Electronics Association and allows searches by ZIP code, and Earth911.com, a public-private partnership that lets you search by type of electronic and address.

What if there are no recycling centers nearby?

Several big chain stores, including Best Buy and Staples, allow you to drop off most small electronics for recycling. Manufacturers are starting to offer recycling, too. Apple, Dell, Samsung, Sony and others now offer free recycling either through mail-in programs or at drop-off sites specified on their Web sites.

Are all these services free?

Most are. But certain components, like cathode ray tubes, are difficult and costly to recycle, so you should expect to pay anywhere from $5 to $20 to recycle an old TV or monitor. Also, you may have to do some hunting to find a place that will take them. A good place to start is a Web site like Earth911.com.

What’s preventing people from simply throwing an old television in the trash, where it ends up in a landfill?

Nothing. In most states, it’s perfectly legal for households to dump electronics in the regular trash, even though items like TVs and computer monitors are classified as hazardous by the federal government.

Hazardous?

Cathode ray tubes have a significant amount of lead, which has been shown to leach.

What about the batteries that power our gizmos? They contain heavy metals which are as bad, if not worse, for the environment.

There is a national recycling program for rechargeable batteries; Sears, Staples, Target, RadioShack, Best Buy, the Home Depot and Lowe’s are participants. But no one has figured a way to make it worthwhile to recycle regular alkaline batteries.

I understand why no one wants my old TV. But what about an iPod that recently died. Can I make money from recycling it?

There are a growing number of Web sites that will actually pay you for old gadgets including Techforward.com, Gazelle.com and MyBoneyard.com. Indicate the type of product you have and its condition, and the sites will tell you how much they’ll pay for it. And, of course, there’s eBay.

Is there a better way to keep gadgets out of the landfill?

Try repairing them. Or resist the urge to constantly upgrade. Reusing a device is the highest form of recycling.

Interview conducted, edited and condensed by Julie Scelfo.

TechCrunch: Twilio Closes Funding Round, Lands Major Customers For Its Telephony API

Filed under: Earth911 - March 2, 2009

By Jason Kincaid

Twilio, the powerful API for phone services that allows developers to quickly integrate telephony functionality into their apps, has closed its first institutional investment round, which was led by Founders Fund and Mitchell Kapor. The company plans to use the new funding to increase its efforts in sales and marketing, and to enhance the infrastructure of the service (likely to cope with increasing demand). The amount of the round was not disclosed.

In conjunction with the funding announcement, Twilio has also announced some of its early customers, including Cheetos, Earth911, and Tumblr, which used the service to launch its Call-to-audio feature last month. Sony Music has also been using Twilio to promote some of its album releases; musicians have been recording phone messages, which can then be sent to fans of the band (you can hear a sample recording below).

The Twilio service allows developers to integrate common phone actions (like placing calls or playing back a recording) using a small set of basic API commands. Building basic projects, like this Rick Roll app, takes only a few lines of code, though developers can create far more advanced applications (Earth911 used Twilio to replace the systems behind their 1-800-CLEANUP recycling hotline).

With a solid business model and a growing customer base that includes Fortune 500 companies, Twilio seems to be off to a great start. While some commenters in my original post noted that there are a number of enterprise solutions that offer similar functionality, it’s clear that Twilio’s simplicity and use-based pricing structure has a strong appeal for many developers.