Talking Trash

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Where can I buy Leafgro for my yard and garden?

With the longer days and warmer temperatures of Spring, folks are heading back outdoors to yards and gardens.   We know because your questions about where to buy Leafgro® are starting to come in. 

What's Leafgro®?  It's a product we love to talk about!  The leaves and grass you set out for curbside yard trim recycling collection go to our Compost Facility.  The resulting product -- a rich, dark compost -- is sold in bags and in bulk under the Leafgro® name.  Our online tour shows how Leafgro® is made.

• Where to buy Leafgro® in Montgomery County
• Where to buy Leafgro® in other area locations

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Monday, March 24, 2008

Recycling Fact Sheets on 6 topics now available in our "web store"

We've just put recycling fact sheets on six popular topics into our "web store" for download.  These topics are:

• Aluminum & Bimetal Cans and Products
• Commingled Materials (cans, bottles, and jars)
• Mixed Paper
• Plastic Bottles with Narrow Necks
• Scrap Metal
• Yard Trim

We find the fact sheets handy for answering many frequently asked questions.  If you would like a quantity of any of these fact sheets to distribute to your neighborhood, multi-family tenants, employees, or other group, just let us know!

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Tuesday, March 18, 2008

We had the correct answer on compact fluorescent bulb disposal on the first call

What advice do local jurisdictions give their residents regarding proper disposal of broken compact fluorescent bulbs? 

The Consumer Unit at television station NBC4 put area governments to the test. The result of its investigation, "Cleaning Up CFL Bulbs", aired last week.  Of the eight jurisdictions contacted,

"only Montgomery County answered our question in one call and gave us the correct EPA instructions."

Kudos to our Call Center staff!

While we welcome calls, our instructions for compact fluorescent bulb disposal are available on our website at any time of the day.

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Sunday, March 16, 2008

Our yard trim information is just a shortcut away

A resident asked us for online information about yard trim recycling and our compost bins.  We gave her the direct links to these pages.

She wrote back to thank us, adding:

Now I just need to explain to others (as a message in a newsletter) how to find them (without the ridiculously long URL) at the DPWT website.

The good news is that you may find our yard trim and composting information quickly and easily at www.montgomerycountymd.gov/yardtrim.

Thank you, P., for the opportunity to share our yard trim information shortcut!

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Friday, March 14, 2008

Scrap Metal Recycling Challenge Update

Scrap metal items of all shapes and sizes are coming in to the Scrap Metal Recycling Challenge!

Here are some of the items we saw on our site visits this week:

They have ranged from the more common...

to the fancier...

 

and even the ornate...

Remember, this Challenge is a special project accepting a wider range of smaller metal items than we typically collect.  Our curbside scrap metal recycling program, available to residents with Montgomery County-provided recycling collection, is for large metal items only.

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Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Our Spring Recycletter is available

I have just posted the Spring 2008 Recycletter to our website.  The Recycletter is published quarterly by our Recycling Volunteer Program.

This issue's contents include:

• Answers to frequently asked questions
• Dates for volunteer training opportunities
• "Save the date" information about our annual Volunteer Appreciation event
• Fun recycling facts
• An invitation to let our staff know about community events to which we could bring recycling information
• A calendar of events

For details, I'll purposely refer you to the Recycletter itself!

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Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Kitten found at the Solid Waste Transfer Station

A dispatch from one of our Solid Waste Transfer Station inspectors:

This morning, Saturday, March 8, 2008, around 10:30 a.m., I received a call on the radio from the car ramp [the trash bays in the public unloading area].  A citizen reported hearing a cat meowing in the number 13 trailer. We had the trailer pulled to the tipping floor [inside the Transfer Station building] and [our contractor's employee and supervisor] climbed in and emptied most of this trailer by hand.

[Searching the trailer]

[The search continued, with the trash now on the Transfer Station floor.]

They searched through the trash for about 35 minutes without finding a cat. With most hope gone at this point, the car ramp called to us and reported that the cat was still meowing near trailer bay 13. We went back to the trailer area but to no avail -- no cat was found.

We all went back to work, feeling that the cat was lost. Then around 1:00 p.m.,  [the employee] called me back to the [public unloading] area. To my surprise, there he stood,  with a kitten in his hands. He didn’t give up and kept looking and found the kitten hidden in the trailer bay. He has volunteered to give the kitten a home.

 Update from March 11: the kitten has been named Lucky, and is doing well in its new home!

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Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Submit your photos to the US EPA Earth Day contest

Fire up your cameras!  Comb through your archived photos!  Consider submitting your best shots to the US EPA'sUS EPA's Earth Day photo contest.  The entry deadline is March 24, 2008.

Here is a short description of the contest from the EPA website:

1. Send us your best photos in three categories:
   • Enjoying the environment
   • Protecting the environment
   • Nature and wildlife
2. We'll select the 10 finalists
3. You score the finalists
4. Highest average score in each category wins

 

Saturday, March 08, 2008

What should I recycle in my 32-gal recycling can?

Many of you are ordering our 32-gallon blue recycling can.  Thanks!  We look forward to receiving the items you collect in them.

This week, our mailbag included this email:

I would like to cancel my request for the lid-covered recycle container. My neighbor has one, and informed me that it is only for paper materials.

Oops!  Actually, the paper-only rule applies just to our wheeled cart.

Here's a little summary of what materials to place into which container:

• blue bin: metal cans, glass and plastic bottles, and glass jars
• blue can: metal cans, glass and plastic bottles, and glass jars
• wheeled cart: paper only

And yes, given this additional information, the resident decided to cancel the request to cancel the order.  A blue can is on the way!

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Friday, March 07, 2008

The Secret Life of Cell Phones

What happens to cell phones after you take or send them in to be recycled?  Why does it matter? 

Watch the Secret Life of Cell Phones to learn more about their life cycle, and issues around their recycling and disposal.  This short video is part of a detailed website with additional information about environmental, health, and public policy relating to cell phones. 

Here's one of the presented findings: "There is enough gold in 200 cell phones to make a gold wedding ring!"

We accept cell phones for recycling at our Solid Waste Transfer Station.