This week was a big one for the environmental community. Monday we celebrated America Recycles Day across the country with a proclamation from President Obama himself. While it was long and a bit dry, there were a few parts that really resonated with us, and reassured us of the importance of our work.
Each small act of conservation, when combined with other innumerable deeds across the country, can have an enormous impact on the health of our environment. On America Recycles Day, we celebrate the individuals, communities, local governments, and businesses that work together to recycle waste and develop innovative ways to manage our resources more sustainably.
Recycling is important, and for some it’s easier than others. When I Love A Clean San Diego made the commitment to serve the community in 1954, recycling was term rarely used. Through phone book recycling drives, Christmas tree recycling programs, electronic waste collection events and our Disposal Solution Center, www.wastefreesd.org, I Love A Clean San Diego has always been first to tackle a recycling challenge.
We were especially happy to hear the report out on Monday from the City of San Diego which announced that the 2010 recycling diversion rate is their highest ever, at 66%. While we don’t want to strain a muscle patting ourselves on the back for this accomplishment, we know that I Love A Clean San Diego’s efforts over the past 56 years may have something to do with this recycling success. But, as a city and a county, there is still room for improvement. Why not shoot for 75% diversion from our landfills? But how?
Good news for those of you living in within the City of San Diego. The City of San Diego also announced on Monday that they will be accepting many more “rigid plastics” in the blue curbside bins. These items include clean plastic food packaging, plant pots, toys, even lawn furniture. The complete press release with all the new rigid plastic rules can be found on the City of San Diego’s website.
And to provide some inspiration for all of us who sometimes struggle with recycling, here’s another excerpt from Obama’s proclamation.
On America Recycles Day, let us respond to our collective responsibility as a people and a Nation to be better stewards of our global environment, and to pass down a planet to future generations that is better than we found it.
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves!
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