Some interesting facts gleaned from an article in Wednesday's Akron Beacon Journal:
Summit county trash is about 453,000 tons per year.
Summit County recently has recycled about 17 percent of residential-commercial garbage and 83 percent of industrial waste.The state requirement is that 25 percent of residential-commercial trash and 50 percent of industrial waste be recycled.
The EPA goal is to make recycling available to 90 percent of residents.
I suppose I shouldn't be shocked at the low figure for residential recycling. When I was growing up, people dumped trash mindlessly without a thought to its eventual effect upon the planet. There are many still with that mindset who simply don't give a damn about trash.
It is disheartening to sort through one's trash and find so many types of plastic that are not recycled in Akron. Pictured above is a pile of plastic ready to be recycled in Austin, TX. You can read about their solid waste program here.
Don't forget to take your cloth bags whenever you go shopping. I have been doing very well with my bags lately. I had been forgetting to take the bags out to my vehicle after emptying them. I'd stop at the store and remember -- oops -- I left my bags at home and now I have to pick paper or plastic. Drat!
So now I always hang my cloth bags on the doorknob after I'm finished unloading. The next time I go out the door, the bags go with me and into my vehicle ready for whatever shopping lies ahead. My personal goal is to cut down on shopping as much as possible and to try to buy items in packaging that can be recycled.
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