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Recycle Reuse Reinvent

2010 District OHCE Leader Training

Life Cycle Approach• Re-think the product and its functions. • Re-duce energy and material consumption• Re-place harmful substances• Re-cycle. Select materials that can be

recycled• Re-use. Design the product so parts can be

reused.• Re-pair. Make the product easy to repair

Source: United Nations Environment Program

What is a Life Cycle Approach?

• A way of thinking that helps us recognize how our choices are part of a bigger system of events

• Recognition that our decisions influence what happens at each stage

• Helps balance trade-offs and positively impact:• Economy• Environment• Society

Lifecycle of a Cotton Shirt

Disposal

Reuse

Recycle

Source: Loughborough University, 2004

Waste

Lifecycle of a Washing Machine

98%2%Water Consumption

5%87%

1%

7%Solid Waste

96%

1%

4%Water Pollution

98%2%Air Pollution

96%4%Energy

DisposalUseDistributionProduction

Source: Loughborough University, 2004

Energy Use:Recycled & Virgin Content Products

Recycle


“Trash” Facts

• The average American generates 4-5 lbs. of garbage/day.

• The average American family generates approximately 2.5 tons of garbage a year.

• Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to keep a 100-watt bulb burning for almost four hours or run your television for three hours.

• Plastics require 100 to 400 years to break down in a landfill.

• Glass takes 4000 years to break down

Recycling Facts • 30-50% of the waste stream is organic• 23 states no longer accept yard waste in land fills

• In Japan, 50% of solid waste is recycled• In the US, 30% of solid waste is recycled

• In Japan, 16% of waste goes to landfills• In US, 60-70% of waste goes to landfills

Roadblocks to Recycling

• Inconvenient• Sort• Clean• Store

• No curbside pick-up• No local drop-off site• Bulky – hard to handle

Aluminum

• 95% more efficient to recycle than to make “new” aluminum

• If you recycle only one thing, recycle aluminum

• To prepare for recycling:• Rinse containers with clear water• Remove stuck on food from foil & pans• Separate beverage cans and foil from spray

cans• If a group is collecting pull tabs for a

charity, remove and save pull tabs

Plastic

• Recycling 1 pound of PET plastic (most water & drink bottles) saves 12,000 BTU of energy

• 66% more efficient to recycle plastic than to make new

• Reuse intact containers then recycle when no longer useful

• Rinse and crush lightweight bottles to prepare for recycling

• Don’t forget the plastic wrapping around paper goods, electronics, etc.

Newspaper/Cardboard

• If all newspaper was recycled, 250 million trees could be saved

• Each ton of paper recycled saves: • 17 trees • 380 gallons of oil • 3 cubic yards of landfill space, • 4000 kilowatts of energy• 7000 gallons water

Steel

• 58% of steel/tin cans are recycled• In the US, we discard enough iron and steel to

continuously supply all of the nation’s automakers

• Using old steel to make new steel preserves natural resources and energy. For every ton of steel recycled, we save:• 2500 pounds of iron ore• 1400 pounds of coal• 120 pounds of limestone

Glass

• About 7-8% of household waste is glass• Glass can be recycled indefinitely • A modern glass bottle would take 4000 years

to decompose – even longer in a landfill• Recycling glass cuts the waste involved in

producing glass by 80%• Recycling Glass causes 20% less air pollution

and 50% less water pollution than when a new bottle is made from raw materials

Special care items

• CFL bulbs • Batteries• Tires• Electronics• Motor Oil• Fire Extinguishers• Appliances

Donate or recycle…

• Eyeglasses• Hearing aids• Bathtubs, toilets &

sinks• Computers• Cell phones • Smoke detectors• Ink Cartridges• Telephones

• Books/Magazines• Packing

foam/peanuts• Paint• Cars• Clothes Hangars• Propane tanks

(grill)• Sewing Machines

Never Recycle:

• Aerosol Cans• Brightly colored

paper• Ceramics/pottery• Disposable Diapers• Hazardous Waste• Household Glass• Juice boxes/coated

cardboard• Medical Waste• Wet paper

• Napkins/paper towels

• Pizza Boxes• Plastic bags &

plastic wrap• Plastic coated boxes

& plastic without recycle symbol

• Plastic screw on caps

Alternatives to Recycling

• Limit use of disposable products

• Compost organic material

• Reuse products

Reuse


Why Reuse?

Reuse is less expensive than:• Recycling• Incineration• Composting• Adding to a landfill

ReuseDelays entry into the waste stream

• Garage/Yard sale• Magazine/Book Swap• Clothing “swap party”• Pass down “special” items• Use grass clippings & leaves as mulch• Donate to Salvation Army, Goodwill, etc• Refinish/re-cover furniture

We should always reuse:

• Glass jars• Shoe Boxes• Worn out towels, sheets• Computer paper• Paper Bags• Leftover building material• Egg cartons (for non-food uses)• Holiday greeting cards• Outdated phone books

Use these more than once:• Dry Cleaning Bags• Butter/Margarine wrappers• Business cards• Used envelopes• Plastic grocery bags• Plastic bread clips/twist ties• Plastic produce baskets• Spray bottles• Mesh bags• Pantyhose• Laundry bottle caps and scoops• Cereal Bag liners

Reuse of food containers:

• Glass containers can be reused for all foods – but should not be used for pressure canning

• Reuse other materials as follows:• Foods with similar chemical composition• Foods that will be exposed to the same type

of process• Do not reuse porous materials such as:

• Paper• Paperboard• Expanded foam

• Do not reuse microwave packages with browning/crisping functions

• It is best not to reuse containers for foods with strong odors

Source: University of Illinois Cooperative Extension Service

Paper or Plastic

• Neither are good if put into a landfill• More than 200 billion plastic bags are

consumed each year• Paper degrades as slowly as plastic

in a landfill and takes up more space

Reinvent


Reinvent – to bring back into existenceRevive – to bring back to life

• 98% of all textile items that go to landfills could be reused or reinvented

• With a plan, all leftover food can be part of another dish

• Most furniture has more than one life

Reinvent - Textiles

Repurpose large pieces of fabric• Curtains• Tablecloths• Sheets

Salvage useable parts of:• Mattress pads• Bath Towels • Blankets• Jeans• Other clothing

Reinvent - Textiles

An old t-shirt can become:• A shopping bag• A pillow case• A throw pillow• A child’s dress• A new shirt• A quilt or throw• A rug • A craft supply

Re-invent in the Kitchen

• Meat• Casseroles• Soups/Stews• Stroganoff• Sandwich fillings• Stir fry• Quiche• Fajitas, quesadillas, enchiladas, tacos• Slow cook leftover roast beef, pork or

chicken and shred for sandwiches or tacos


• Vegetables• Freeze leftovers until you have enough

to make a pot of soup or stew• Add to casseroles• Add Italian dressing to drained cold

vegetables and serve as a salad• Puree or “juice” onions, celery &

peppers and add to other sauces for flavor


• Potatoes• Make a thin white sauce and add a

chopped baked potato for soup• Scoop out the insides of baked

potatoes, mash and season and return to the skins for “twice baked potatoes”

• Microwave and re-mash potatoes (adding a little hot milk)

• Make potato pancakes from leftover mashed potatoes


• Fruit• Make jam, jelly or preserves• Make juice or puree and freeze in ice

cube trays• Mix with a little sweetener and non-fat

yogurt and freeze • Use syrup from canned fruit to baste

ham or marinate food• Layer fruit with cake and whipped

topping for dessert


• Pasta• Combine with meat, veggies and sauce

for a casserole• Add Italian dressing and leftover

veggies and chill for pasta salad• Rice

• Rice Pudding• Fried Rice• Mix with ground beef for meatloaf• Add to soup


• Bread• French Toast• Bread Pudding• Let dry and make bread crumbs• Croutons

• Hot Dog/Hamburger Buns• Separate the top from the bottom and

spread with margarine, garlic powder and Parmesan cheese and toast or broil

Reinvent your kitchen/yard waste

39

Reinvent Kitchen/Yard Waste

OK to Compost• Animal manure

• Cardboard rolls, cereal boxes, brown paper bags

• Clean paper, shredded newspaper

• Paper towels

• Coffee grounds and filters, tea bags

• Cotton and wool rags

• Dryer and vacuum cleaner lint

• Crushed eggshells (but not eggs)

• Fireplace ashes

• Fruits and vegetables

• Grass clippings, yard trimmings, hay, straw

• Hair and fur

• Houseplants

• Leaves

• Nut shells

• Wood chips, sawdust, toothpicks, burnt matches

Not OK to compost

• Meat, fish, egg or poultry scraps (odor problems and pests)

• Dairy products (odor problems and pests)

• Fats, grease, lard or oils (odor problems and pests)

• Coal or charcoal ash (contains substances harmful to plants)

• Diseased or insect-ridden plants (diseases or insects might spread)

• Pet wastes (dog or cat feces, cat litter) (might contain parasites or germs)

• Yard trimmings treated with pesticides (might kill composting organisms)

• Black walnut tree leaves or twigs (substances harmful to plants)

Money-saving Skills Everyone Needs

1. Make minor sewing repairs/alterations

2. Create a household budget/balance a checkbook

3. Make soup

4. Comparison shop

5. Take care of your wardrobe

6. Clean your house

7. Bake in the microwave

8. Apply paint

9. Replace screens/filters

10.Put together a resume

Money-Saving Skills Do it yourself Professional

Minor sewing repairs Sewing kit - $5 Replace buttons - $6Hem a skirt - $9-12

Make Soup Less than 50¢/serving Canned soup - $1/servingTake out - $3-7/serving

Take care of your wardrobe

Wash & iron at home< 25¢/item for water, energy, starch, etc.

Launder/press @ cleaners $2-3 for shirts$3-4 for pants

Clean with household products

A gallon of vinegar - $2.50A box of baking soda - $.75

A gallon of brand name cleaner $7-8

Replace AC/Furnace Filters

Cost of filter - $10-15 Cost of a service visit - $125 and up

Grow a garden Seed & fertilizer - $5-10 for a small garden

$50-75 at the grocery store Even more for organic

Source: MSN Money

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