December 4, 2009
Opinion
Notes from the Darien recycling bin
Because you haven’t heard from me lately, you may have thought the Darien Environmental Group has been on sabbatical, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Let me bring you up-to-date on what we’ve been doing and what else has been going on in the state that you may or may not have been aware of:
• The Environmental Group education program for the 2008-09 school year — kindergarten through fourth grade — with the help of many amazing parent volunteers reached 1,400 students with our environmental messages. We have already completed the kindergarten program for this year — handing out 80 more lunch kits than we did last year — and have taught the second graders how to compost.
• The annual April-May Nike-Reuse-A-Shoe collection kept 800 pounds of sneakers out of the waste stream this past spring bringing Darien’s total to 4,600 pounds since the beginning of the program in 2004.
• In May, the Environmental Group sent another 640 pounds of household batteries (collected in the back hall lobby of Town Hall) to be de-manufactured for their metal content. Since September 2006, we have spent $1,765 to have 2,020 pounds of batteries properly disposed.
• For Earth Day a PowerPoint presentation on recycling in Darien was created. Should you have a group interested in learning more and needing a speaker at a meeting, please contact me as noted below.
• The Environmental Group delivered over 200 reusable shopping bags containing valuable information about living “responsibly green” in our community, to new residents in Darien.
• As of July 1, a change in Darien’s solid waste disposal contract meant that we expanded our recycling to include all plastics (Nos. 1-7) with a triangle except for bags and Styrofoam (even if it has a triangle). Further, the town is now getting paid $15 per ton of recyclables. Good news and even more reason for you to recycle everything you possibly can; if you don’t you not only reduce the money we receive for the weight of your recyclables, but you increase the weight of the trash going out for which we pay $75 per ton.
• Now the bad news: electronics collections will no longer be funded for Darien. However, several of our neighboring towns are also in the same situation so we’re hoping there can be a consolidated collection at some point. As of January 2011, Connecticut’s mandatory electronics law will take effect. At that time manufacturers will be required to reimburse towns for electronics they collect for recycling. Presumably Darien will establish a drop off location. If there are collections in the area at any time prior to then, the Environmental Group will publicize the dates/times.
• The expanded beverage container deposit redemption program in Connecticut went into effect in October and has the potential to recover an estimated 500 million plastic containers from the waste stream — and add $17 million to the state coffers in the bargain. The extension, which added most plastic water bottles to the state’s bottle bill (there’s now a 5¢ deposit on them), was the first major expansion of the nearly 30-year-old program. Those are all positive things, but we still want all of you to consider avoiding the whole thing by bringing your own reusable bottles with you. Still by far the best option.
• The Environmental Group would like to applaud Middlesex Middle School, and especially Frank Keen, for recently initiating an unbelievably inclusive recycling program. Recycling for schools and municipal buildings is mandated: All could be subject to hefty fines if found they are found to be non-compliant. So far only Middlesex has taken the initiative to develop a program that is totally comprehensive — although some of the schools have partial programs in place.
• Last, but certainly not least, is the establishing of a new Environmental Group subcommittee with the charge of reducing the number of disposable bags taken away from establishments in Darien. You may have seen members of this committee outside our local grocery stores recently. They have a fabulous Web site: ChooseToReuseInDarien.org. Check it out.
The writer is chairman of the Darien Environmental Group.
http://www.acorn-online.com/joomla15/darientimes/opinion/43346-melvin-notes-from-the-darien-recycling-bin.html
