Mommy Goes Green

We’ve all got an old stroller ( or 3 ) hanging out in our garage.  If it’s time to get rid of it, don’t put it in the garbage! You have two better choices:

1.  Sell or give it away on Craigslist or Freecycle – there is likely someone in your neighborhood that needs it and a little extra cash in the pocket couldn’t hurt either.

2.  Recycle it – BabyPlanet can take old strollers and recycle 100% of the parts towards new items.  All you have to do is mail it to them :

ECA Inc.

2710 S. 13th Street

Springfield, Illinois 62703

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Toys ‘R’ Us is hosting the ‘Great Gear Trade-in Event‘ and is accepting used baby gear such as high chairs, strollers, car seats, cribs and play yards in exchange for 20% off new baby gear.  There is a list of participating brands so make sure to check first before taking them in and the event goes through Sept 20.

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I do. not. like. clutter. I don’t like having things in or around my house that are not useful.  I regularly make trips to Goodwill, participate in children’s clothing consignment events and put items on Craigslist or eBay.  It just makes me feel more organized and cleaner when our home and life isn’t cluttered.

Lately, a pile of junk has been piling up along the side of our house – the side no one but I can see.  Old motorcycle tires, a bag of cement left in the rain, and unusable pieces of wood.  I waited (patiently impatiently) for my husband to get rid of them but after 2 summers of staring at the pile, I decided to take care of it myself.

So, with about 15 minutes worth of research and phone calls, I found out where to take our junk – and not to the landfill.  I had my husband load up the truck with all the junk in our garage and along side the house that we weren’t using anymore – it ended up being a lot more than wood, cement and tires.  A landscaping company took all the wood and bag of cement and the tire center took the motorcycle tires – all for a whopping $8.  The best trip of the day was to a recycling facility that took everything else for FREE – satellite dish, steel bars, broken plastic storage tubs, and old plastic outdoor furniture. 

I love that our old stuff won’t be sitting in a landfill for hundreds of years – it will be getting a new life.

If you’ve got junk to get rid of, try these tips to find somewhere to take your stuff :

1.  Dial up Earth911 – it’s a website where you can enter the stuff you want to get rid of and it will tell you what locations will take it in your zip code.

2.  Call your recycling service and ask what other items they might take at their facility, beyond their curbside service.  Our facility was 10 minutes away and took a lot of stuff for FREE. 

3.  If you don’t have curbside recycling service,  call your garbage service and ask for recycling facility recommendations.

4.  If you have electronics to get rid of, find local recyclers here.

5.  If you have hazardous materials, make sure to dispose of them properly.  Hazardous materials include things like batteries, paint, CFL bulbs, propane tanks, pesticides or lawn chemicals, household chemicals (bleach, cleaning supplies) or motor oil.   Many communities have hazardous waste collection events or a facility specifically to take these items.  IKEA stores will take batteries and CFL bulbs inside their store.

Now, I’ve seen the garages in the neighborhood, I know I’m not the only one who needs to get rid of junk – take a load off (literally) today!

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It happens almost every time I get a prescription medication – I have a couple pills leftover.  I am TERRIBLE at remembering to take medication more than once per day. I can’t remember what I’ve done with these leftover pills in the past ( maybe thrown them in the trash ) but for the last two years, I’ve held on to any extra pills planning to “dispose of them properly”.  Well, now is the time.  

SmarXt Disposalis a partnership between Fish and Wildlife Service,  the American Pharmacists Association, and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.  It is a campaign to educate the public on the most responsible way to dispose of medication – safeguarding lives and protecting the environment.

Pharmaceuticals enter our water from three sources:

1. medicine that has passed through someone without completely metabolizing
2. flushing unused medication down the toilet
3. pouring unused medication down the drain

According to SmarXt Disposal, most scientists have concluded that there is no short-term aquatic life effects due to medication in the environment but work is continuing on evaluation the long-term effects.  The studies also suggest that it is unlikely that the current quantities of medications in the environment are harmful to human health.

Still, I’m not comfortable ingesting even small amounts of medication, regardless of what the ‘current studies show’.  We all know how frequently research changes.

There are a couple ways to dispose of unused medication properly ( prescription or OTC ).  First, see if there is a drug Take Back program in your community, currently 18 states have programs.   Second, contact your local hazardous waste program as they may have organized hazardous waste collection sites or events and take unused medications.  If none of these options exist, dispose of any extra medication ( prescription or not ) in the following way:

1. pour medication into a sealable plastic bag – if the medication is solid (pill or liquid capsule), crush it or add water to dissolve it
2. add kitty litter, sawdust, or coffee grounds (for example) to the plastic bag to make it less appealing to children and pets
3. seal the plastic bag and put it into the trash
4. remove and destroy all personal information on medication containers and recycle them

While sending unused medication to the landfill doesn’t seem like a great choice, it is definitely a better alternative to putting them down the drain or toilet.

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What does that recycling symbol on plastic mean?  On most plastics, you will find the 3 arrows with a # in the middle indicating the type of plastic the product is manufactured from.   This number also helps indicate whether or not it is recyclable in the area you live in.  You might find that only a couple types of plastic are recyclable curbside and you may need to store the other plastics and periodically deliver them to another facility.  For example, our recycling curbside service takes a lot of different plastics but I store plastic bags/wrapping and hard plastic containers ( from toy packaging) and take them to a recycling facility about once a month.

1 – PET – Polyethylene terephthalate – commonly used in soft drink and water bottles

2 – HDPE – high-density polyethylene – made from petroleum and commonly used in laundry bottles and milk jugs, plastic bags, plastic lumber and hula hoops

3 – V – vinyl or PVC - rigid plastic, over 50% of PVC manufactured is used in construction.  When used with plasticizers ( to make it softer and flexible), it’s commonly used in hoses, water beds, pool toys, inflatable structures and shower curtains.

4 – LDPE – low-density polyethylene – made from petroleum, it is commonly used in plastic bags, six pack soda can rings, playground slides and food storage containers

5 – PP – polypropylene – commonly used in ropes, rugs, food containers, medical plastic items and dairy containers ( like yogurt )

6 – PS – polystyrene – found in disposable cutlery, CD/DVD cases, and smoke detectors. Foamed polystyrene is used in packing materials, insulation and foam drink cups.

7 – O – other - variety of plastics not fitting in other 6 categories.  Currently controversial polycarbonate with bisphenol A (BPA) is a #7 plastic.

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