A Word About Recycling with Ollie Maier

I will keep this short, as I know you have many other things vying for your time — last minute shopping, wrapping gifts, watching ball games, going to religious services, etc. But this article, from a Resource Recycling newsletter, I thought would be worth your time. It describes how one organization is trying to help you recycle.

Two-hundred brand owners and retailers are now using the How2Recycle labels on their product packaging, according to the article. A How2Recycle label, simply put, provides more detailed recycling information to consumers than the traditional chasing arrows symbol we all know.

“While labeling packaging for recyclability certainly won’t solve all our problems in how we use, value and manage materials in society, telling people how to actually recycle is frankly the least we can do,” a spokesperson said. “We are thrilled that so many companies share this belief and together we can empower people to recycle more accurately.”

And quoting directly from the article, the numbers related to their efforts were impressive to me:

• 85,000: Number of packaging design improvement recommendations given by the How2Recycle program to member companies since late 2017.
• 70,000: Number of different products currently using the How2Recycle labels.
• 3,200: Number of unique labels in the How-2Recycle library.
• 2,600: Number of product brands using the How-2Recycle label
• 175: Number of How-2Recycle labels issued to brand owners each day.
• 45%: Growth in number of How2Recycle members over the course of 2018.

I hope their efforts are helping or will help you recycle. And don’t forget to recycle what you can during this busy period including your Christmas tree if it was a cut live one. With that, Mary and I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

Till next week, do have a great one and may the gifts you give or receive be very pleasing — and for all the football fans, may the luckiest team win.

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Ollie is a local citizen concerned with the environment and helping others. A retired Air Force fighter and instructor pilot, he is a graduate of Leadership San Marcos and received his degrees at Texas State University where he worked on staff before totally retiring. For questions or comments, he invites you to call him at 512-353-7432.or email [email protected].