Hi all,
As you work on your own recycling and reuse initiatives, you might find it useful to know what is going on in other jurisdictions. As you may know, Colorado is doing some interesting work in recycling and reuse. This week and next, I will share with you some of the work that they are doing.
One of their most interesting initiatives is the Eco-Cycle/City of Boulder Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials (CHaRM), which diverts twenty-five categories of hard-to-recycle materials from landfill. These include, but are not limited to:
-electronics
-small appliances
-printer cartridges
-smoke detectors
-solar panels
-mattresses and box springs
-ceramics and concrete
-bikes and bike tires
-fire extinguishers
These items can be dropped off for recycling at a central depot in Boulder, Colorado. Note that there are facility fees and item fees that are charged when recycling some of these items. It may be tempting to complain about the fees, but they do make sense. One of the reasons why these materials are difficult to recycle is the cost associated with recycling them. The cost to recycle them exceeds their value in the secondary materials market once they’ve been processed. An old mattress, for example, takes a lot of time to dismantle into separate materials (metal, wood, and textiles) for recycling. There is a cost to process these materials and to ship them to the nearest end markets, which can sometimes be far away.
Another initiative is an online Reuse Hub where residents in the City of Boulder (and beyond) can find an interactive map showing them where to find local businesses involved in reuse and repair. This includes refill and bulk grocery stores, repair services (e.g. vacuums and sewing machines), thrift shops, used furniture stores, and restaurants that use reusable to-go containers.
And finally, for a list of reuse resources such as Facebook marketplace, The Buy Nothing Project, and ThredUP, click here.
As you work on your own recycling and reuse initiatives, you might find it useful to know what is going on in other jurisdictions. As you may know, Colorado is doing some interesting work in recycling and reuse. This week and next, I will share with you some of the work that they are doing.
One of their most interesting initiatives is the Eco-Cycle/City of Boulder Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials (CHaRM), which diverts twenty-five categories of hard-to-recycle materials from landfill. These include, but are not limited to:
-electronics
-small appliances
-printer cartridges
-smoke detectors
-solar panels
-mattresses and box springs
-ceramics and concrete
-bikes and bike tires
-fire extinguishers
These items can be dropped off for recycling at a central depot in Boulder, Colorado. Note that there are facility fees and item fees that are charged when recycling some of these items. It may be tempting to complain about the fees, but they do make sense. One of the reasons why these materials are difficult to recycle is the cost associated with recycling them. The cost to recycle them exceeds their value in the secondary materials market once they’ve been processed. An old mattress, for example, takes a lot of time to dismantle into separate materials (metal, wood, and textiles) for recycling. There is a cost to process these materials and to ship them to the nearest end markets, which can sometimes be far away.
Another initiative is an online Reuse Hub where residents in the City of Boulder (and beyond) can find an interactive map showing them where to find local businesses involved in reuse and repair. This includes refill and bulk grocery stores, repair services (e.g. vacuums and sewing machines), thrift shops, used furniture stores, and restaurants that use reusable to-go containers.
And finally, for a list of reuse resources such as Facebook marketplace, The Buy Nothing Project, and ThredUP, click here.
