|
A number of special collections and events are being held this month throughout the region in observance of Earth Day. A sampling is listed below.
To learn more about ongoing recycling opportunities in your community and other events scheduled in throughout the year, contact your community government or:
• Wood County Solid Waste Management District, on the Web at www.wcswmd.org, or 419-354-9297.
• Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful, Inc., on the Web at www.lucascountyoh.gov, or 419-213-2255.
• Ottawa, Sandusky, Seneca Joint Solid Waste District, on the Web at http://recycleoss.org, 419-334-7222, 1-888-850-7224
Great American Clothes Cleanup
Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful, Inc., (KT/LCB), the Salvation Army, WTVG 13 ABC and the Erie Street Market are once again sponsoring the Great American Cleanup Clothes Collection throughout the month of April.
Through April 30, old, unwanted clothing, shoes, fabric, used textiles, etc., may be brought to the Salvation Army drop-off site at the Erie Street Market, 237 Erie St., Toledo. Collection times are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week.
The collection offers a perfect way to encourage the “reuse and recycle” ethic in the community, organizers say. Usable clothes are donated to charities and the fibers from the rest are recycled into roofing material, bond paper, industrial wiping cloths and remanufactured textiles.
For more information, call KT/LCB at 419-213-2255.
Environmental Fair, recycling event
Owens Community College will bring environmental awareness to the forefront as the college’s Environmental Club hosts its third annual Environmental Fair April 16.
More than a dozen environmental organizations are scheduled to participate in the fair, which will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Student Health and Activities Center.
Fair participants will include Duck and Otter Creeks Partnership Inc., City of Toledo Division of Environmental Services, Toledo-Lucas County Rain Garden Initiative, Keep America Beautiful Inc., The University of Toledo’s Lake Erie Center, Metroparks of the Toledo Area, Wood County Solid Waste Management District, Mercy for Animals and Phoenix Earth Food Co-Op, among others.
Several campus groups and organizations will host informational tables and various alternative energy vehicles will be on display. At 5 p.m. in the Law Enforcement Center Rooms 145-7, Bowling Green State University Director of the Electric Vehicle Institute Barry Piersol will address the ever-changing landscape of alternative energy.
The fair will also include a free electronic recycling drive. Items may be dropped off at the northwest corner of the Audio/Visual Classroom Center parking lot (Lot N). Electronic devices being accepted include batteries, cameras, cell phones, computers, fax machines, electric lawn mowers, CD players, DVD players, video game consoles, generators, keyboards, microwave ovens, monitors, scanners, telephone equipment, radios, projectors and printers, among other items.
For more information, call 567-661-7583 or 1-800-GO-OWENS, ext. 7583.
Garden plastics accepted
The Master Gardeners of Sandusky and Ottawa counties have organized a recycling program for horticultural plastics.
Participating businesses will collect recyclable plastic starting May 1 and will continue through Oct. 31. Collection times will be normal business hours at the businesses, which include:
• Bench’s Greenhouse, 18063 W. SR 105, Elmore.
• Bench’s Farms, 9159 Jerusalem Rd. (SR 2), Curtice.
• Stoney Acres Farm, 4543 County Road 41, Helena.
Clearly marked recycling bins will be available for deposit of plastic items. Items that will be accepted include pots, flats, trays, cell packs, nursery tubs, plastic sheeting, stretch wrap and plastic containers, bottles, jugs and bags. All plant material and soil must be removed from containers. Agricultural and garden chemical containers must be triple rinsed.
Plastics dropped off at these sites will be collected by PIPO, Inc., of Norwalk, OH, which will reprocess the waste for their use or for other end users. A large amount of PIPO’s recyclable plastic is currently being used by Monroeville Industrial Moldings, Inc., to manufacture highway safety components.
Agricultural growers or agricultural-related businesses that have large quantities of horticultural plastic may call PIPO directly at 419-668-1820 for possible direct pick-up of their materials.
For more information, contact Joe Johnson at 419-332-0908.
Clean up your act
Once again, Northwest Ohio communities are participating in the Great American Cleanup throughout April.
Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful will provide bags for community groups, schools, scouts, churches and others who volunteer to participate in clean-up efforts. Last year, 2,334 volunteers from 29 groups and 377 volunteers from nine schools participated in the effort. To register to help in the 2009 effort, call 419-213-2255.
Talking trash
Your favorite piece of trash collected during the Great American Cleanup could win a lucky collector a gift package, a school classroom a pizza party and a chance to be featured on the statewide Keep Ohio Beautiful Web site. Volunteers participating in the cleanup in Lucas County should take a picture or video of the most unusual item found and submit it to the “Trash Spoils Everything” contest. Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful, which will select one winner to enter into the statewide contest.
Entries must be submitted by May 1 by e-mail to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or by mail to KT/LCB, Attention: Dawn Gerhart, 1011 Matzinger Rd., Toledo, OH 43612. A state winner will be selected by the end of May.
Youth service
Area youths are invited to join those from all over the world to collectively collect litter and clean up their communities.
The fifth annual Global Youth Service Day will be held April 25 in the Toledo area. Youths participate in morning service projects, then enjoy a free luncheon and some fun at the Toledo Zoo.
The event is sponsored by Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful and 11 other community organizations. For more info or to register, call 419-213-2255.
Benton Twp. sponsors one-day collection
The Benton Township Trustees are sponsoring a one-day trash collection for residents April 18 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Separate containers will be available for metals and household trash. The containers will be located near the green recycling bins behind the maintenance building at Graytown Park. Unloading assistance will be available. No items may be dropped off early or late.
Acceptable items include:
• Predominantly metal items (appliances, microwaves, air conditioners, engines, bicycles, scrap metal, etc.).
• Batteries (keep separate).
• Household trash (non-recyclable glass and plastic, rinsed pesticide containers, light bulbs, mirrors, ceramics, misc. junk).
Liquids, paint, yard waste, building materials, tires and hazardous waste will not be accepted.
Newspapers, magazines, corrugated cardboard, glass jars (#1 and #2), plastic bottles and steel and aluminum cans may be recycled in the green recycling container.
For more information, call Dan Harder at 419-862-3774.
Garden pot recycling
North Branch Nursery is currently accepting plastic garden pots for recycling.
Collection hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday; 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sunday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. All tags and debris should be removed before bringing pots for recycling.
Call 419-287-4679 or visit www.northbranchnursery.com for more information.
Compost clinics
A pair of compost clinics will be held April 21 at 10 a.m. and again at 6:30 p.m. at Bench’s Greenhouse, SR 105, Elmore. The cost is $5 per person. Registration is required. For more information or to register, call the Ottawa County Soil and Water Conservation District at 419-898-1595.
Appliance collection
The Ottawa, Sandusky, Seneca Joint Solid Waste District will hold an appliance collection for Ottawa County residents Saturday, April 25 from 9 a.m. to noon at the Ottawa County Fairgrounds, W. SR 163, Oak Harbor.
The district will be accepting any appliance or household object primarily made of steel including grills, mowers, etc. Units containing Freon will be accepted as well. (No televisions, computers or items primarily made of plastic. In addition, the district will not accept refrigerators or freezers with food inside.)
Call 1-888-850-7224 for more information.
New recycling facility
The Lucas County Solid Waste Management District has purchased a new recycling facility expected to be up and running soon.
The district is refurbishing a dual-stream recycling operation at 1011 Matzinger Rd. in Toledo, which will also serve as the home of the Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful, Inc. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to “promoting public interest, education and knowledge in maintaining a clean, safe, attractive environment through voluntary partnerships with citizens, government and business.”
Living Green
In an effort to cut home energy costs and reduce carbon emissions, Lucas County has developed a pilot program to demonstrate the financial and environmental benefits of home retrofits.
By partnering with local businesses and media, the “Living Green - Saving Green Lucas County” project will aim to show residents how easy, affordable and effective energy-saving home improvements can be. The project will specifically focus on several energy efficiency techniques that most any homeowner can do.
The program focuses on six areas – energy audits, insulation, caulking and weather-stripping, lighting, programmable thermostats and water reduction.
For more information, visit www.lucascountygreen.com/livinggreen.html.
Electronics recycling offered
Best Buy stores nationwide now offer recycling of electronic items, including TVs and computers to DVD players and more.
Best Buy does not charge a fee for recycling most consumer electronics; however, they do charge $10 for TVs 32 inches and under, CRTs, monitors and laptops. The cost will be offset with a $10 gift card.
Best Buy currently cannot accept TVs greater than 32 inches or external/internal hard drives, which need to be removed before recycling laptops and desktops. Stores accept up to two items per household per day.
Visit www.bestbuy.com for more information.
Computer recycling
Reconnect offers an easy, convenient and responsible way to recycle used computer equipment. Drop off any brand of used equipment at participating Goodwill donation centers. To find your nearest location, visit http://reconnectpartnership.com.
It’s free, and you'll get a receipt for tax purposes. What’s more, you'll be helping protect the environment and benefiting your community at the same time.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, recycling electronics helps reduce pollution that would be generated while manufacturing a new product and the need to extract valuable and limited virgin resources.
Celebrating “Earth”
In celebration of Earth Day, the natural wonders of the world will come to the big screen as Disneynature unveils “Earth” in theaters nationwide April 22.
The first film in the Disneynature series, “Earth,” narrated by James Earl Jones, tells the story of three families – Polar bears, elephants and whales – as they make their amazing journeys across the planet.
Visit www.disney.com/earth for more information.
 |
Special Sections 
Subscribe to this comment's feed