Help keep sites clean.

Unfortunate news from the CitPat on Friday. C'mon, Jackson - we can do much better than this:

Trash dumped at recycling center upsets officials

Friday, January 25, 2008
By Kristin Longley

A white, 6-by-8-foot sign looms over the Summit Township recycling center: ``Free recycling depends on good sorting and preparation.''

Unfortunately, not everyone is getting the message.

Officials increasingly have noticed improper use of the recycling center, located at the township offices, 2121 Ferguson Road.

People are dropping off unaccepted materials or leaving their recyclables outside the labeled green bins, said township Trustee Gordon Heins.

Use of the center is free to anyone and open 24 hours a day.

``This could be closed down, and we don't want to do that,'' Heins said. ``It's a very popular site and only a few people are ruining it for the rest of us.''

In the past several weeks, wooden pallets, plastic foam, mechanical parts and unflattened cardboard have been found at the center. Once, officials found a plastic tub containing unidentified materials left near the bins, Heins said.

The overhead sign clearly lists the accepted materials, which include cans, glass, plastic bottles, newspaper, magazines and paper.

The recycling center opened in 2004. It was not expected to cost the township beyond building the concrete slab on which the bins sit. But the recent problems have cost both time and money.

Scattered papers and other trash prompted township leaders to add a three-sided wooden fence around the center for about $1,800, Heins said.

Still, local firefighters and township officials, including Heins, frequently have to tidy up the area, he said. Fire Chief Scot Harvey said firefighters often help clear away unaccepted materials.

``We don't mind picking up, but the biggest issue is it's getting worse,'' Harvey said. ``It's taking more and more time, and it looks bad.''

The city of Jackson's recycling center, 209 W. Louis Glick Highway, is experiencing similar problems, said SanDee Porter, public works assistant.

Pieces of furniture and other nonrecyclable items are packed between bins. Staff members visit the area two or three times per week to pick up garbage and broken glass, she said.

``A lot of people are abusing it,'' Porter said. ``Something needs to be done.''

Northwest Refuse in Blackman Township handles the recycling centers in Summit Township, Jackson and six other sites in Jackson County, said Bill Thomas, resource recovery coordinator. Sometimes, complaints arise from an overflow of recycling materials, he said.

The bins are emptied at least every Friday, and staff members check them when trucks are in the area. People can call Northwest Refuse if the bins are overflowing, Thomas said.

``For the most part it's a community effort,'' he said.

Heins said people who witness misuse of the Summit Township site are encouraged to contact the township office at 788-4113.

``We don't like garbage. We don't like trash,'' he said. ``This is a real privilege, and we want to be able to continue it.''

Bottled water: scourge of the Earth?

Salon.com ran a great question-and-answer piece, "Ask Palo," where a reader asked if bottled water was really that bad, environmentally.

Palo makes a statistical and moral case:

First, the manufacturing of plastic bottles, which are often made from nonrecycled virgin material, requires vast quantities of petroleum, and only 12 percent of this material is recovered for recycling. The total mass of an empty 1-liter bottle is around 25 grams (this varies from brand to brand) and it is made from PET (polyethylene terephthalate). One kilogram (1 kg = 2.2046 lbs.) of this type of plastic requires around 6.5 kilograms of oil, uses 294 kilograms of water (this includes power plant cooling water), and results in 3.7 kilograms of greenhouse gas emissions. Based on my calculations, an empty 1-liter bottle requires over 7 liters of water in its manufacturing process, uses 162 grams of oil, and results in over 100 grams of greenhouse gas emissions. (That's about 10 balloons full of carbon dioxide, or how much an average car emits over half a kilometer or one-third of a mile.)

Next, the distribution of bottled water, often by container ship from the other side of the planet (Fiji, Evian, San Pellegrino), is fuel intensive and results in greenhouse gas and sulfur dioxide emissions. Transportation emissions are measured in grams of greenhouse gases (in carbon-dioxide-equivalent units) per metric ton per kilometer. Shipping by container ship emits about 17 grams of carbon dioxide per ton km, while trains release 56 grams per ton km, trucks spew 102 grams per ton km, and jet aircraft belch 570 grams per ton km. So the important factors in transportation emissions are weight, distance and transportation mode. Since we can't alter the weight of bottled water and companies will automatically select the most efficient and cost-effective means of transport, we are left to control the distance component through our consumer choices.

...When compared with the price of tap water, bottled water costs up to 50,000 percent more (and many brands get their water from municipal water supplies).

Bottled water also represents a major ethical dilemma, given that millions of people around the world lack access to clean and safe drinking water. Currently, over one-sixth of the world's population, or about 1 billion people, routinely lack access to safe and clean drinking water. Just 20 percent of our annual $75 billion expenditure on bottled water could provide for the drinking water needs of less fortunate people around the world. If we assume that one well is needed to meet the minimum needs of about 100 people, and if we assume an average cost per well of $1,500, we would need to spend $15 billion globally. According to these assumptions, we collectively spend five times more on bottled water each year than it would cost to eradicate the 1.8 million deaths of children due to waterborne illness each year.

So think about that next time you reach for an Aquafina: some kids don't have access to clean water out of a bucket, let alone a plastic bottle.

Fight identity theft AND recycle your documents

American 1 Federal Credit Union - otherwise known as my place of employment - is hosting a "Shredfest" day this Saturday.

You can drop by this Saturday, Jan. 19 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at our 718 E. Michigan Ave. branch location, at the Home Office. Document shredding company Shred-It, based in Troy, MI, are the shred experts and will shred and recycle all your personal papers.

Identity theft is said to be the ìfastest growing crime in America,î with up to 8 million Americans affected in 2005, according to a Federal Trade Commission survey. The credit union also helps members fight identity theft through postings on its ìScamWatchî web page and articles in the monthly newsletters.

Think of it this way: you can protect your personal papers and get your recycling done in one swoop.

The way I see it, the more paper we shred on Saturday, the less chance thieves can get their hands on it. And it means less paper will be going to our local landfill. Plus it's a good way to start the year off on a clean slate. You get to shred all your documents safely and securely, and weíre going to make sure it all gets recycled, too.

Hope to see you Saturday!

- by Dave Lawrence, RJ VP

Make my bag canvas.

The world is starting to hate plastic grocery and shopping bags - and for good reason. The things are slowly but surely taking over the earth.

Much buzz has sounded over the giant, Australian-sized plastic heap in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It's a giant Atlantis of rubber ducks and plastic bags.

But just last week I noticed my favorite grocery store, Meijer (who is already doing pretty well environmentally), has provided canvas-style shopping bags for purchase. The price? Ninety-nine cents. The style? A snazzy royal blue and green.

I snatched three of them up, figuring that my $3 would help ease my conscience over using so many plastic bags over the years. That, and they make a pretty profound statement: in the checkout, there were a few shoppers who took notice of my new take-homes.

Meijer isn't alone. Local grocer Polly's Country Market, with locations from Chelsea to Adrian and everywhere in between, provides the sturdy shopping bags too, and also for 99 cents. It's a trend that includes the famous "I am not a plastic bag" bags from our friends in the East. People are eating them up.

This is a trend that we at Recycling Jackson couldn't be happier about. Just this weekend, while working at the site, I noticed people bringing their plastic recyclables wrapped in - what else? - plastic grocery bags. They don't take up as much room as, say, your Tide detergeant bottle. But add them all up together in one bundle, and you're talking about a big petroleum-based monster.

So do us all a favor: spend 99 cents a week and stock up on reusable bags. Just remember to bring them in each time you shop, and spread the word.

- by Dave Lawrence, RJ VP

How to recycle your Christmas tree.

Still have your needle-shedding Christmas tree?

The Daily Green gives some direction on how to properly take care of your tree. They point to an Earth911.org site that give tips on what to do and where to go.

Says Teresa Hall, "just because these trees are green doesn’t mean that they are always friendly to the environment."

Over at Treehugger, they held an informal poll on whether environmentalists go natural or use plastic trees, plus they give some advice on how to make your Christmas tree as earth-friendly as possible.