Braving The Recycling Frontier

First, some bad news: Even if you follow New York City’s recycling guidelines religiously and use the Park Slope Food Coop to fill in the gaps, you’ve only just begun.  

But here’s the good news: Forging ahead into the wilds of the recycling frontier is much easier than it sounds.

Honestly, it’s virtually pain free. So get ready to gather up all that useless crap cluttering your apartment and dispose of it the green way. Not only will you feel like an earth-loving saint, your apartment will look fantastic. 

The Lower East Side Ecology Center, a non-profit organization whose core mission is to support community based recycling, sponsors free electronics recycling events throughout the City including in Park Slope. 

“In 2003, there were no opportunities to recycle electronics,” said Christine Datz Romero, of the Ecology Center. “The Electronic Recycling Event was developed in response to this significant need and because of how toxic electronics are.”

The events will be held in Park Slope on October 15 (Eighth Avenue between 14th and 15th streets) and October 16 (Seventh Avenue between 4th and 5th streets) and runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine. Everything from computers, to cell phones and VCR’s will be accepted. For a full listing of items accepted and good tips on recycling some that aren’t, check out the Ecology Center’s website and find out more about E-waste.

“We love coming to Park Slope,” says Datz-Romero.  “Everyone is really focused on recycling and sustainability issues.”

 (So you had better all turn up with some recyclable electronics in hand.  We’ve got a reputation to protect.)  

If those dates don’t fit your schedule many of the same items can be recycled at Staples and other local retailers, though a small fee is sometimes involved. Also, be sure to check how a particular retailer recycles because not all processes are as green as others. Materials, which aren’t recycled responsibly, might as well not be recycled at all.

After you’ve unburdened yourself and the world of your useless electronic garbage, consider doing the same with your dresser drawers.

GrowNYC—a non-profit whose mission includes providing New Yorkers with access to locally grown food and helping them recycle more—collects recyclable textiles at the Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket. Their tent is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

From the numerous, brightly-hued laundry bags already stacked up by 10 a.m. on a recent Saturday it seems that a lot of folks are already taking advantage of this great service. And with good reason. According to GrowNYC’s website, “The average New Yorker tosses 46 pounds of clothing and textiles in the trash each year, totaling 6 percent of our entire residential waste stream.”

GrowNYC also collects composting materials at the same location. For a full listing of what’s accepted and how best to collect them see GrowNYC’s website. And the best part is that you can tell people you’re composting and all you have to do is bring the stuff and drop it off. GrowNYC’s doing the hard part, including making sure that the composted material is put to good use.

So, if you’ve fantasized about being so eco-evolved that you’re doing your own composting and using it to grow organic vegetables in your back yard, but the reality is that you will likely never even have a backyard, GrowNYC gives you a way to compost without all the costs of commitment.

And if you need another reason to give it a go, here’s why composting matters: “Food scraps, if not composted and returned to the soil, are landfilled where they break down into landfill gas,” says Jeanne Hodesh, of GrowNYC. “A combination of carbon dioxide and methane, both potent greenhouse gases.”

For any items you’re dying to ditch that contain CFC gas—such as refrigerators, air conditioners or dehumidifiers—call 311. They’ll come out and remove the gas so that you can leave the items for curbside recycling. 

Also, at Household Special Waste Drop Off Sites, the city accepts an eclectic array of other household items. They accept everything from batteries (rechargeable, alkaline, or auto) to tires and latex paint. Check the City’s website for a full listing and locations. If you’ve got some old CFL bulbs lying around you can recycle those at Home Depot. 

Now, what do you do if you’ve recycled all of the above and you’ve still got an apartment full of junk?  I’m not sure.  But it may be time to assess whether you don’t have more pressing problems then how best to go green.