Living Green, One Tip at a Time - (a weekly feature)

Living Green, One Tip at a Time -

#7 - Recycle  (part 2) 

Recycled Content: Ask your local retailers to stock more products made from recycled materials and buy products made from the highest recycled content whenever possible.

Green Paper: In general, try to buy products/containers made from recycled material as often as possible to support the recycled product market. When purchasing paper products (toilet paper, etc,), look for paper that has been recycled using a minimum of 50% post-consumer waste. Also, purchase from companies that do not use chlorine to bleach their paper products (which creates dioxin waste).

Natural Fertilizer: Leave grass clippings on the lawn as fertilizer.

Composting: Start a compost pile with yard trimmings and food scraps. Learn more at Wikipedia's Compost page.

Pack-it-Out: If you are traveling and no recycle bins are available, pack your recyclables home with you whenever possible.

Eco-Friendly Burials: For the ultimate in recycling, check out the growing movement in eco-friendly burials and conservation burial. Also, eco-friendly recycled paper coffins are becoming available.

Recycled Gold: If you are shopping for wedding rings or other jewelry consider buying recycled gold jewelry and synthetic diamonds and gemstones.

Hazardous Waste: The other key aspect of dealing with waste effectively is to dispose of toxic products at a hazardous waste facility. Products requiring special handling include:

• Building Materials - paint , varnish, paint thinner, solvents, rust remover, wood preservatives and driveway sealer
• Automotive products - gasoline, transmission oil, brake fluid, kerosene, charcoal lighter fluid, power steering fluid, used motor oil,used oil filters, used antifreeze
• Household cleaners - spot removers, rug cleaners, metal cleaners, bathroom cleaners, oven cleaner, drain cleaner
• Pesticides - insect killers, weed killers, flea products, moth crystals, fertilizers with weed killer
• Miscellaneous - photographic chemicals, acids and corrosive chemicals, pool chemicals, compact fluorescent light bulbs (mercury), Ni-Cd batteries.

The information contained in this post was obtained, with permission, from the following site -

http://www.globalstewards.org/ecotips.htm#reduce

Monica