ILACSD Kicks Off America Recycles Day Campaign!

Today’s blog comes from our Hotline Program Assistant, Barbara and Hotline Manager, Amanda! Our hotline team is gearing up for America Recycles Day and they want to make sure you’re up-to-date on the latest and greatest tips for waste reduction, while having a little fun! Read more below about what you can look forward to leading up to America Recycles day.

America Recycles Day is the nation's one and only day dedicated solely to recycling, so get ready for 1 month of recycling tips and tricks from ILACSD to get you geared up for the BIG DAY!
America Recycles Day is the nation’s one and only day dedicated solely to recycling, so get ready for 1 month of recycling tips and tricks from ILACSD to get you geared up for the BIG DAY!

Mark your calendar for America Recycles Day on November 15th! This year marks the 7th Annual America Recycles Day- the only nationally-recognized day to celebrate our waste reduction milestones and to share ideas with one another. The goal of America Recycles Day, an initiative of Keep America Beautiful, is to inspire communities to recycle more and correctly all year long. On that note, starting today, I Love A Clean San Diego kicks off its own America Recycles Day campaign! From now until November 15th, ILACSD will share with you tips and tricks to help minimize your impact on local landfills!

sorted recycling
Thankfully, in SD most recyclable items can commingle in one bin! Paper, rigid plastics, glass, aluminum, and cartons.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest to receive our helpful tips. You can look forward to posts about –

  • #DIY upcycling tips – give old items a second life!
  • #TransformationTuesday
  • Recycling humor – yes, it does exist!
  • Tips for hard to recycle items

I Love A Clean San Diego started as an organization to combat San Diego’s litter problem, and has quickly evolved to address residents’ recycling needs, as well. ILACSD first started its recycling hotline in 1972, focusing on keeping thousands of Christmas trees out of landfills. Today, we continue to run our one-stop recycling resource, WasteFreeSD.org, and our newest addition, RepairSD.org!

Christmas Tree Recycling, 1972
Challenges in finding out where to recycle Christmas trees spurred ILACSD to start a recycling hotline in 1972…more than 40 years later, it’s still going strong. Give us a call today, 1-800-237-BLUE!

As San Diego moves towards a 75% diversion rate by 2020 and a zero waste goal by 2040, we are dedicated to be your go-to resource to help reach these goals. Although this may appear to be a lofty goal, ILACSD is here to help inform fellow San Diegans and ultimately, keep valuable resources out of local landfills.

More than 51,000 Americans have already taken the America Recycles Day pledge on Keep America Beautiful’s webpage. By taking it, you pledge to learn more about the materials that can be recycled, reduce your waste by recycling, and encourage others to do the same. Click here to take the pledge today!

For more information on all of your recycling, reuse, and repair needs, visit WasteFreeSD.org and RepairSD.org!

 

Pledge to Give Your Garbage Another Life!

One day to educate and motivate. One day to get our neighbors, friends and colleagues excited about what can be accomplished when we all work together. One day to make recycling bigger and better 365 days a year!  Help  the County of San Diego and ILACSD celebrate America Recycles Day  by joining us for an after-school cleanup in Alpine! We’ll be teaming up with students, parents and teachers from Boulder Oaks Elementary School to clean up the neighborhood. We would love your help in spreading the message about the importance of recycling year-round!

America Recycles Day

Why is this day so important? Let’s look at the numbers: the average American produces 4.4 pounds of trash a day, and on the whole the United States produces more than 250 million tons of trash a year. San Diegans produce more than the national average, at 5.4 pounds a day! However, only about 35 percent is currently recycled, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

 Recycling provides many benefits including:

  • Conserving natural resources: Recycling conserves trees, water, and minerals – preserving the environment for future generations.
  • Reduction of the need for landfills: Recycling allows material to re-enter the marketplace as new products instead of taking up space in landfills.
  • Pollution prevention: Recycling avoids greenhouse gas emissions (caused by processing and  extraction of raw materials) equivalent to removing more than 34 million cars from the road each  year.
  • Energy savings: Recycling reduces the need to extract and process raw materials.
  • Job creation: Recycling helps create new jobs in the United States for both the recycling industry and manufacturing.

 How can you help? Here’s our call to action!

  • Sign up to volunteer at our after-school cleanup
  • Learn about what is recycled in your community through our website, WasteFreeSD
  • Take the “I Recycle” pledge:  whether at home or at the office, commit to recycle more and give your garbage another life!