Pledge to Recycle and Keep Wildlife Safe

America Recycles Day (November 15), is an opportunity to raise awareness of waste, educate on the right ways to recycle, inspire friends and family to follow our example and ensure the safety of wildlife in the process. Right now, only 34.5% of the nation recycles. That means there is a lot of work to be done. Will you pledge to recycle?

Tweet: I pledge to recycle for wildlife! http://bit.ly/1xEECBn #AmericaRecyclesDay #IRecycle http://ctt.ec/9VjcmTweet: I pledge to recycle for wildlife! #AmericaRecyclesDay #IRecycle

Otter Swimming with Plastic Bottle
Wild giant otter swimming with plastic water bottle . (Photo by Flickr Paul Williams)

Recycling: Beyond the Kitchen

A great way to step up your recycling game is to think about the recyclables throughout your entire home. Too often, Americans keep their recycling confined to the kitchen, but did you know there is so much more to recycle than just in the kitchen?

Think about your workspace, for example, and how you could be recycling all of that paper you use or sort through (e.g. letters and cataloges). For every ton of paper recovered for recycling, 3.3 cubic yards of landfill space are saved!

And how about your electronics? Electronics contain valuable precious metals such as gold, silver, platinum and can be recycled into jewelry, new electronics and more.

Finally, those ubiquitous single-use plastic bags – we encourage you to take along a reusable bag, but if you to have a plastic bag – remember to separate it from your other recyclables. Plastic bags (and other film) are recyclable into new products, you just need to take them to one of the over 18,000 retail locations that collect them.

Get Set for Recycling Success

We challenge you to think outside of the kitchen and take some time to set up your entire house for recycling success. Here are a few tips:

  • Explore other items in your home that can be recycled in the infographic below.
  • Place recycling bins in different rooms of your home to make recycling easier.
  • Solidify your commitment by pledging to keep it up all year long at http://www.americarecyclesday.org/.

On average, each of us generates 4.4 pounds of trash per day, just think of all the potential of that trash! Do your part in caring for our environment and reduce, reuse and recycle. Let’s keep our planet beautiful for generations to come.

Top 10 Things to Recycle in Your Home

Graphic showing items to recycle by room, courtesy of Keep America Beautiful.
Graphic showing items to recycle by room, courtesy of Keep America Beautiful.

About the Author

BrendaPulleyThis is a guest post by Brenda Pulley, Senior Vice President of Recycling at Keep America Beautiful. She works to enhance efforts focused on improving convenience and engaging individuals to recycle more.  In her role to grow the reach and impact of KAB’s recycling initiatives, she is responsible for overall strategic planning as well as research and program design and implementation.  Brenda also serves on the Board of Directors of SERI (Sustainable Electronics Recycling International) – the organization charged with promoting environmentally responsible practices throughout the electronics recycling industry. 

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Published: November 14, 2014