Why Should You Recycle Your Used Oil Filter?

Local resident recycling her used oil filter

Did you know that one used oil filter has an average of 10 fluid ounces of motor oil trapped inside it?

Many people know that they can and should recycle their used motor oil, but they may not know that your used oil filter also contains used motor oil, as well as steel, both of which can be recycled so that they don’t contaminate our local environment and take up space in local landfills.   CalRecycle reports that more than two million gallons of motor oil from these filters are being disposed of improperly each year in California. Recycled used motor oil can be re-refined and used again, ensuring that it doesn’t contaminate our local waterways.  It only takes one gallon of used oil to contaminate one million gallons of drinking water!

I Love A Clean San Diego has partnered with cities in the area to provide an incentive to residents to properly dispose of used oil filters by providing a replacement filter for free when they bring their old filters to one of the events below.

If you can’t attend one of these events, there are more than 300 locations in San Diego County that accept used oil filters year-round for recycling at no charge. These locations, most of them auto parts and repair stores known as Certified Collection Centers, will also accept up to five gallons of used motor oil at no charge. In addition, Certified Collection Centers will pay residents 40 cents per gallon of used motor oil, upon request. Motor oil can’t be contaminated with water or other liquids such as antifreeze, solvents, or gasoline. If you have contaminated motor oil or more than five gallons of non-contaminated motor oil, you must visit a household hazardous waste collection facility.

For more information on where to recycle used motor oil and oil filters, visit I Love A Clean San Diego’s one stop recycling resource, WasteFreeSD.org. We encourage all San Diegans to visit our recycling website to learn more about similar events held countywide!

Upcoming Oil Filter Exchange Events:

Bring your old filter and receive a new one for free! Limit one free filter per person.

Chula Vista
Saturday, January 28, 2012 from 9am – 1pm
Pep Boys at 454 Broadway Ave.

El Cajon
Saturday, February 4, 2012 from 9am – 1pm
Pep Boys at 201 Jamacha Rd.

Santee
Saturday, February 11, 2012 from 9am – 1pm
Pep Boys at 10041 Mission Gorge Rd.

Lemon Grove
Saturday February 18, 2012 from 9am – 1pm
O’Reilly Auto Parts at 6925 Federal Blvd.

La Mesa
Saturday February 25, 2012 from 9am – 1pm
O’Reilly Auto Parts at 5350 Jackson Dr.

National City
Saturday March 3, 2012 from 9am – 1pm
O’Reilly Auto Parts at 1202 E. Plaza Blvd.

Intern Focus: Christina, Community Events Intern

Christina Diette came to I Love A Clean San Diego in September 2011 looking to gain experience in event coordination and make use of a love for the outdoors that she gained growing up in a rural community.  Since her start as the Community Events Intern, she has attended six outreach events and cleanups, and has spent countless hours in the office helping with event preparation, volunteer recruitment, and program maintenance.

Christina, right, with ILACSD staff at an outreach event

My father often tells me that he doesn’t know what he wants to be when he grows up. Somehow, I seem to have gained the same mentality. Almost three years after earning my undergraduate degree in History, I have yet to determine what I want to be when I grow up. With our current economy making it hard for graduates such as myself to find careers pertaining to our degrees, the world may still hold opportunities to travel down a rewarding path. Over the past four months, that path in my life has been with I Love A Clean San Diego.

According to Daniel Pink in his book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, people are more motivated and satisfied in their work lives if they believe they are working for a purpose greater than themselves. As an intern at ILACSD, I do believe I am working toward a greater cause. With every email I send asking for volunteers and with every early Saturday morning I spend checking in volunteers at clean-up sites, I am making a difference in this organization’s ability to fulfill its mission to help the community learn about and participate in enhancing our local environment.

My experience at ILACSD has been varied and eye opening. I have had the opportunity to see firsthand the extreme amount of refuse that ends up in the Tijuana River. I helped young children recognize the difference between trash and recyclables at a street fair. I spent an evening at a mixer surrounded by eco-conscious locals and vendors on the rooftop of a green-certified hotel, and walked the streets of Pacific Beach counting cigarette butts to determine the success of the organization’s Cigarette Litter Prevention Program. I have always recycled, but this internship has showed me just how many more ways one can help make a difference.

Like my father, I may not know what I want to be when I grow up. I do know, however, that continuing to live an environmentally responsible lifestyle is a priority, wherever life takes me. Making a difference, however small, is the opportunity that ILACSD has afforded me and what I have learned here will stay with me always.

Environmental Education and Our Nearby Nature Program

Education plays a large part in our mission to actively conserve and enhance the environment here in San Diego. Each year, we conduct a variety of outreach programs to educate youth in the San Diego region about properly conserving our local environment. This helps guide them in developing good habits at a young age, that then become part of daily life and ultimately result in a healthier, cleaner, and more vibrant San Diego for future generations.

We believe that the best way to educate today’s youth is to emerge them in hands-on activities. We want to instill a lifelong appreciation for the local environment by providing opportunities to cultivate a greater sense of responsibility for protecting it.

We provide environmental education and community outreach programs for elementary, middle, and high schools, as well as youth groups. Our Educators uses a variety of media, including presentations, storytelling, and hands-on demonstrations to teach topics such as: 

• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
• Household Hazardous Waste
• Litter Reduction
• Used Oil Recycling
• Ocean and Water Pollution Prevention
• Watershed Education

We also offer an opportunity to expand their knowledge through place-based learning and nearby nature field trips, which have been proven more effective at instilling environmental knowledge among youth.

After the education in the classroom, we lead them in a service project in their local community, such as trash removal, habitat restoration, and storm drain stenciling to restore local waterways!  We also coordinate nearby nature field trips, where children can better understand and value the nature surrounding them every day. While many adults are able to give an account of a time when they experienced nature as a child, most of today’s children cannot (71% of adults vs. 26% youth according to a study by Manhattanville College conducted in 2004).

By educating our local youth about how they can help preserve our environment, the program will build a stronger sense of community pride and improve San Diego’s natural environment. A cleaner environment means a healthy community, which will improve the lives of all San Diego residents!

Are you a classroom teacher in a grade 3-6? Would you like a Nearby Nature experience for your grade level team? I Love A Clean San Diego is offering two lucky schools the opportunity to participate in Nearby Nature education programs!

What is Nearby Nature?

Educators will lead your entire grade level on walking field trips to your nearest “nature” area, providing guided hikes and standards based outdoor learning activities. This is an excellent opportunity for your students to experience nature firsthand! If you are interested or have questions, please send an email to education@cleansd.org today!

Nature education improves academic performance. When the environment is used as an integrating context for learning the school curriculum, students have shown better performance on standardized measures of academic achievement in reading, writing, math, social studies, and science. Additionally, teachers have seen reduced discipline and classroom management problems and increased engagement and enthusiasm for learning. Nature experiences help children develop a sense of place in their community and increase awareness of San Diego County habitats. Nature education programs can also increase environmentally responsible behavior, including students’ perceived knowledge of issues and action, environmental sensitivity, and intention to act. – Source: San Diego Children & Nature’s “Nearby Nature School Field Trips” Guidebook

Make a Recycling Resolution

It’s the beginning of a brand new year and many people are setting their new year’s resolutions, all the things they want to accomplish and improve on in the coming year. If you’re reading our blog, protecting the Earth is probably already high on your priority list, so this year make a resolution to help our local environment by increasing your recycling in 2012. We don’t just mean recycling paper, card board and bottles, there are many things you’re likely going to come across throughout the year that you may want to get rid of. Before you trash them, check our database www.wastefreesd.org to see if they can be recycled or disposed of properly so that they don’t take up space or contaminate our environment in a landfill.

Here are a few things to remember to recycle throughout the year:

Winter

The holiday season is a time of giving and receiving. New electronics and new toys most likely means you’ll be getting rid of old ones. There are many options for recycling your electronic waste, and now you can even recycle plastic toys in your regular recycling bins!

Spring

Time for spring cleaning! There are a million little things (and some big things!) you’ll want to throw away while you’re cleaning out your house, garage, or storage unit. Things like paint, used batteries and other household waste should not be thrown in your trash. Even if they can’t be recycled, there are places you can take them where they can be properly disposed of.

Summer

Broken surf board? Old flip flops? Wine corks from that batch of sangria? All can be recycled!

Fall

It’s football season which probably means tailgating or backyard BBQs. Don’t forget to collect and recycle your beer and soda cans or bottles and be sure to use reusable plates and cups! If you’re doing yard work, yard and wood waste can also be recycled.

Household Hazardous Waste Tips:

If you live in the unincorporated ares of San Diego County, another easy option to dispose of items that can’t be recycled but are still hazardous to the environment is to bring them to the Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event on January 7^th from 9am to 3pm at Ingold Sports Park (2551 Olive Hill Rd. Fallbrook, CA 92028).

They will be accepting household hazardous waste, electronics, sharps and medications. Items NOT accepted: Business waste, tires, ammunition, explosive and radioactive materials, air conditioners or large appliances.

• Transportation requirements of household hazardous waste: Leave products in existing container, if possible. Make sure lids are on tight so containers will not leak. Transport containers in the trunk or in back of the vehicle away from passengers and pets.
• Do not transport over 15 gallons or 125 pounds of household hazardous waste at one time. Containers used for transport must be no larger than a 5-gallon bucket.
• Note: Only Five (5) televisions or computer monitors per car will be accepted, in addition to household hazardous, electronic and universal waste.

The next Free Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event on March 10^th! They can also find more information on our one-stop recycling resource by searching for the waste category “household hazardous waste collection event”.