Often, people are hesitant to recycle because they think it will be too time-consuming, too messy or just plain too much trouble. In reality, if you start off with just a few items, you may realize that recycling will work quite comfortably into your busy lifestyle.
Monday is America Recycles Day. ARD is an annual day to encourage people to recycle. If you have not tried recycling yet, you may want to consider taking our recycling pledge. Here are some easy tips for incorporating recycling in your home.
It is simple. The trick is to figure out how to make recycling work in your life and in your home layout. Some families keep recycle bins or canisters in their kitchen cabinets or in their garages. But if your home is like ours, that may not work. Our kitchen is a compact area that works for just the two of us, but it leaves no room for recycle bins. Our carport is also open. So we have had to be resourceful.
We keep our items for recycling in separate reusable shopping bags — once they are rinsed and dry — until we take them out to the nearest county recycling drop-off site. We simply take a bag or two when we are on an errand out that way or when we take the regular garbage. Bags work really well in small locations like dorm rooms, too. You can hang them on cabinet knobs or on hooks. You don’t have to have recycling bins. Just find containers that are a good size for your family’s needs. There are very affordable containers that can work, like stackable bins — from $5 to $10 each — at Walmart or Target. It can be a simple system that can work in your home.
Another point to consider is how much recycling you may accumulate. Our kids are grown so we have far less garbage now than we did when the boys were growing up. We also use few single-serving items, except water bottles on occasion and my husband Lindsay’s beer bottles. We use reusable drink bottles and mugs for water, Lindsay’s coffee addiction and my tea addiction. So, for us, bags work because they fit our lifestyle and our consumption habits. They are also easy to carry to drop sites in our county.
There are recycling systems — some quite pricey — available that might work for larger families or families with more extensive garbage needs. But look around your house first. You may already have containers that would be suitable. Just figure out what works for you. Remember, you do not have to pay a lot for a system unless you want to.
Here are my top 10
easy-to-recycle items:
• Clear plastic containers PET 1 and 2 — water bottles, soda bottles, etc.
• Colored plastics — some soda bottles
• Clear glass bottles — drink bottles and some food containers
• Colored glass (brown and green) — some soda bottles and beer bottles
• Aluminum cans — drink cans
• Tin cans — food cans, like for canned green beans
• Newspapers, including the sales inserts, and magazines
• Paper — computer and copier paper
• Plastic shopping bags — several stores, like Walmart and Kroger, have bins set up for returning these bags
Always rinse out and dry any containers that you are recycling. It will eliminate any concerns about bugs or smells. Items like newspapers can be bundled up with string or put in brown paper bags to carry. Remember, all those inserts in newspapers can also be recycled with the newspaper. If you have paper or shredded paper, just deposit the paper in a bag in the newspaper section. Magazines can also be bundled and tied up with string. The items can be dropped off at any Liberty County recycling drop-off location. Just deposit them in the bins designated for each type of item. Here are the Liberty County Solid Waste convenience centers and recycling drop-off sites:
• 25 S. Dairy Road
• 156 Pate Rogers Road
• 836 Limerick Road
• 64 Left Field Road
• 619 J V Road
• 50 Isle of Wight Road
• 344 Fort Morris Road
• 111 Carter Road
• 129 Sandy Run
• 941 E.G. Miles Parkway
• 200 Talmadge Road
• 4000 Coastal Highway
You also can recycle some household items at quarterly Recycle It! Fairs, like the one coming up on Nov. 20 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at the old hospital site in Hinesville. We partner with Goodwill Industries and Coastal Auto and Recycling to collect the following items: computer or electronic equipment, televisions, batteries, ink and toner cartridges, cell phones and accessories, CFLs and fluorescent bulbs, household paint (only in clean, rust-free containers), telephone books, used motor oil or antifreeze, clothing and household goods in good condition.
Even if you do not recycle yet, drop by and get some information about recycling and take the recycling pledge for America Recycles Day! We will have periodic giveaways throughout the morning of items that will help you reduce waste and recycle at home and at work.
Take the pledge this week!
Volunteer for events:
• Monday: America Recycles Day. Take the pledge to recycle and have a waste-free lunch to encourage waste reduction.
• Saturday, Nov. 20: Recycle It! Fair for electronics and household hazardous waste items. Call 880-4888 for more information.
Contact Keep Liberty Beautiful at 880-4888 or klcb@libertycountyga.com.
Monday is America Recycles Day. ARD is an annual day to encourage people to recycle. If you have not tried recycling yet, you may want to consider taking our recycling pledge. Here are some easy tips for incorporating recycling in your home.
It is simple. The trick is to figure out how to make recycling work in your life and in your home layout. Some families keep recycle bins or canisters in their kitchen cabinets or in their garages. But if your home is like ours, that may not work. Our kitchen is a compact area that works for just the two of us, but it leaves no room for recycle bins. Our carport is also open. So we have had to be resourceful.
We keep our items for recycling in separate reusable shopping bags — once they are rinsed and dry — until we take them out to the nearest county recycling drop-off site. We simply take a bag or two when we are on an errand out that way or when we take the regular garbage. Bags work really well in small locations like dorm rooms, too. You can hang them on cabinet knobs or on hooks. You don’t have to have recycling bins. Just find containers that are a good size for your family’s needs. There are very affordable containers that can work, like stackable bins — from $5 to $10 each — at Walmart or Target. It can be a simple system that can work in your home.
Another point to consider is how much recycling you may accumulate. Our kids are grown so we have far less garbage now than we did when the boys were growing up. We also use few single-serving items, except water bottles on occasion and my husband Lindsay’s beer bottles. We use reusable drink bottles and mugs for water, Lindsay’s coffee addiction and my tea addiction. So, for us, bags work because they fit our lifestyle and our consumption habits. They are also easy to carry to drop sites in our county.
There are recycling systems — some quite pricey — available that might work for larger families or families with more extensive garbage needs. But look around your house first. You may already have containers that would be suitable. Just figure out what works for you. Remember, you do not have to pay a lot for a system unless you want to.
Here are my top 10
easy-to-recycle items:
• Clear plastic containers PET 1 and 2 — water bottles, soda bottles, etc.
• Colored plastics — some soda bottles
• Clear glass bottles — drink bottles and some food containers
• Colored glass (brown and green) — some soda bottles and beer bottles
• Aluminum cans — drink cans
• Tin cans — food cans, like for canned green beans
• Newspapers, including the sales inserts, and magazines
• Paper — computer and copier paper
• Plastic shopping bags — several stores, like Walmart and Kroger, have bins set up for returning these bags
Always rinse out and dry any containers that you are recycling. It will eliminate any concerns about bugs or smells. Items like newspapers can be bundled up with string or put in brown paper bags to carry. Remember, all those inserts in newspapers can also be recycled with the newspaper. If you have paper or shredded paper, just deposit the paper in a bag in the newspaper section. Magazines can also be bundled and tied up with string. The items can be dropped off at any Liberty County recycling drop-off location. Just deposit them in the bins designated for each type of item. Here are the Liberty County Solid Waste convenience centers and recycling drop-off sites:
• 25 S. Dairy Road
• 156 Pate Rogers Road
• 836 Limerick Road
• 64 Left Field Road
• 619 J V Road
• 50 Isle of Wight Road
• 344 Fort Morris Road
• 111 Carter Road
• 129 Sandy Run
• 941 E.G. Miles Parkway
• 200 Talmadge Road
• 4000 Coastal Highway
You also can recycle some household items at quarterly Recycle It! Fairs, like the one coming up on Nov. 20 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at the old hospital site in Hinesville. We partner with Goodwill Industries and Coastal Auto and Recycling to collect the following items: computer or electronic equipment, televisions, batteries, ink and toner cartridges, cell phones and accessories, CFLs and fluorescent bulbs, household paint (only in clean, rust-free containers), telephone books, used motor oil or antifreeze, clothing and household goods in good condition.
Even if you do not recycle yet, drop by and get some information about recycling and take the recycling pledge for America Recycles Day! We will have periodic giveaways throughout the morning of items that will help you reduce waste and recycle at home and at work.
Take the pledge this week!
Volunteer for events:
• Monday: America Recycles Day. Take the pledge to recycle and have a waste-free lunch to encourage waste reduction.
• Saturday, Nov. 20: Recycle It! Fair for electronics and household hazardous waste items. Call 880-4888 for more information.
Contact Keep Liberty Beautiful at 880-4888 or klcb@libertycountyga.com.