Burbank’s Recycling Buy-Back Program Resumes

Burbank’s Recycling Buy-Back Program Resumes
Eligible beverage containers may be redeemed at City Recycling Center
COB: 11.09.2012

The Burbank Recycling Center has announced that it will resume its beverage container buy-back operations at the 500 Flower Street facility beginning Monday, November 12, 2012.

Burrtec Waste Industries Inc., the City of Burbank’s contract operator of the Recycle Center, received its recycle center and processor certifications from CalRecycle (Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery) on November 1, 2012.

The certifications will allow Burrtec to redeem California Refund Value (CRV) for beverage containers brought to the center. CRV is $.05 for each eligible beverage container less than 24 ounces, and $.10 for each container 24 ounces or greater.

Reopening the buy-back operations at the Recycle Center will relieve some of the pressure on the only other buy-back facility in Burbank, which is located in the Ralph’s parking lot at 1100 North San Fernando Boulevard.

For further information: 818-238-3900

The Majestic Plastic Bag

Video from the EcoBurbank blog

The Majestic Plastic Bag - A Mockumentary
Heal The Bay

Help stop our 19 billion bag-a--year habit in California and put an end to plastic pollution.

Filmed in the style of a nature documentary and narrated by Academy Award-winner Jeremy Irons, this "mockumentary", though lighthearted in tone, hammers home the stark reality of California’s plastic bag pollution situation.

Blue World Map By: OCAL

Green - Back To School

Gold Star For A Green Back To School
Your Daily Thread: August 10, 2010 by Danielle Davis

Reuse is always in style and the same goes this fall. First, dig out any BYO-equipment you may already have hiding in cupboards. For the rest, may we suggest:

*Food-grade stainless steel snack containers at Kids Konserve are non-toxic, free of baddies like lead and BPA and perfect for stashing in a backpack or even a purse. Hummus? Yogurt? Trail mix? Carrots? Yup, they’ll all fit snuggly inside.

*Reusable cloth snack and sandwich bags are all the rage. You can score a handmade number on etsy from crafters. Or you can create a version with your own sewing chops.

*Transform to go with our favorite stainless steel carriers from To-Go Ware. When you’re picking up food on the run, better not to carry out any waste with your warm lunch.

*When brown-bagging, earn an A with a Rebel Green organic cotton, made in the USA sack—it may not be brown, but it can be used over and over and over again.

*PeopleTowels are small organic cotton towels you carry with you. When you wash your hands, whip yours out instead of snagging the disposable paper ones to dry with. You’ll save about ¼ of a tree a year in addition to waste and water.

When choosing to buy a supply, go for used, recycled, upcycled, something from an independent retailer, something with a smaller footprint and longer life. Also, one ingredient to avoid when possible is PVC (aka vinyl), a kind of plastic ubiquitous in school supplies (think shiny binders and backpacks) that has toxic chemicals in its entire lifecycle, harming workers, air, water and wearers. The Center for Health, Environment and Justice has a fantastic (no-cost) guide to going PVC-free this year with recommendations on everything from lunch bags to laptops to umbrellas.

Then there’s:
*Alchemy Goods turns worn out inner tubes into sleek but strong accessories perfect for hauling your school or office accoutrements.

*For art supplies that do right by the inspiring natural world, look no further than Stubby Pencil Studio. It carries tools for a budding artist from safe, soy-based Crayon Rocks that encourage fine motor skills to eco-colored pencils crafted from FSC-certified wood.

*Need a new binder? Rebinder’s super plain offerings will do for any age, especially since they are a blank slate to add your own adornment. Even better, they are free of vinyl and constructed of recycled cardboard for a closed loop in more ways than one.

*If you’re attached to your sticky notes, Post-it will plant one tree for every recycled paper Post-it pack you buy—if you register it on its site here. Or, Russell and Hazel has some pretty ones that are also 100% recycled.

There are many more ways to green your back to school routine like carpooling, walking, biking, or taking public transportation. You can start a recycling program or advocate for healthy lunches. Whatever you do, know that we’re behind you! That’s right, you get a gold star from us.

Check out last year’s back to school guide for more! READ MORE !

MyCall2Recycle

Call2Recycle® Challenges
North Americans to Recycle 1 Million Pounds of Batteries
July – October 1, 2010

Cell phones, laptops, mp3 players, cordless power tools and digital cameras all use rechargeable batteries, which can and should be recycled.

Call2Recycle, North America’s only free rechargeable battery and cell phone collection program, launched MyCall2Recycle, an awareness campaign designed to educate consumers and businesses on the importance and ease of battery recycling.

During the campaign, consumers are asked to scour their homes and rid their attics, junk drawers and storage spaces of all used rechargeable batteries and cell phones and bring them to any of Call2Recycle’s 30,000 public drop-off locations to help the organization achieve its goal of collecting one million pounds of rechargeable batteries between now and Oct. 1.

Since 1994, Call2Recycle has recycled millions of pounds of rechargeable batteries through a network of 30,000 drop-off locations in the US and Canada.

Find a Drop-Off location by Zip Code
or Call: 877.2.RECYCLE - 877 . 273 . 2925

Some Burbank Locations

Best Buy - 1501 N Victory Pl – 818 845 5121
Do It Center - 3221 W Magnolia Blvd – 818 845 8301
Fry's Electronics - 2311 N Hollywood Way – 818 526 8159
Grainger - 7565 N Lockheed Dr – 818 253 7970
K-Mart - 1000 N San Fernando Blvd – 818 843 4221
Lowe's - 2000 W Empire Ave – 818 557 2300
MelroseMAC - 2400 W Olive Ave – 562 879 3865
Office Depot - 228 E Burbank Blvd – 818 848 2591
RadioShack - 2412 W Victory Blvd – 818 842 8579
Verizon Wireless - 1729 N Victory Pl – 818 842 2722

More @

Recycling - SCARCE

Finder's keepers and reuses
Nothing goes to waste at a self-proclaimed Dumpster diver's group. Old keys are melted for their metal, and wine corks go toward classroom art projects.
LA Times: May 10, 2010 by Heidi Steven, Chicago Tribune

Kay McKeen has sent microscopes to Ghana, zippers to Ethiopia, textbooks to India and a baby grand piano to a high school on Chicago's South Side.

She outfits classrooms across Illinois. She turns wax nubs into bright, gorgeous crayons. She collects, sorts and donates hundreds of thousands of books.

She's equal parts environmentalist, Dumpster diver and missionary, and her motivation is simple: "If we don't rescue it, it's in a landfill forever."

McKeen, 59, of Wheaton, Ill., is the founder and executive director of SCARCE (School and Community Assistance for Recycling and Composting Education), an organization dedicated to collecting people's unwanted stuff and finding a use for it — from bottle caps and old keys to overhead projectors and, in one case, a 16-foot balance beam.

"It came from a school whose insurance no longer covered gymnastics," McKeen recalled. "We found a magnet school in Chicago that just happened to need a new balance beam."

When you walk though the front door at SCARCE headquarters in Glen Ellyn, Ill., tidy suburbia gives way to delightful chaos. Thousands of books line the walls from floor to ceiling. A shelving unit holds containers of American flags, dried-up ballpoint pens, eyeglasses, old keys, wine corks, cellphones and other items that often get tossed.

"It's not trash," McKeen said. "It's resources."

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"We're throwing out stuff that can help save lives." READ MORE !

Green Day Planner: Burbank Feb 3

Burbank Green
2010 Environmental Film Series
February 3: 7 pm- 9pm

"GARBAGE - THE REVOLUTION STARTS AT HOME"
COST: Suggested Donation of $10
(Donations and reservations are not necessary, but always welcome.)

A feature documentary about how the family household has become one of the most ferocious environmental predators of our time. (Trailer)

Everyday life under a microscope has never been so revealing. By the end of this trashy odyssey, you are truly inspired to revolutionaize your lifestyle for the sake of future generations.

Also featuring: Episodes from EcoDivasTV and a post-film Q/A with the Burbank Recycle Center's Kreigh Hampel and Ferris Kawar about how you can reduce your household or office waste.

Christmas Tree Pickup

Dates Set for Christmas Tree Pickup: Trash collectors will pick them up before 7 a.m. daily for the first two weeks of ’10. Glendale News Press: December 28, 2009 by Max Zimbert

As Christmas gives way to the new year and households start packing up their decorations, city officials have announced a number of recycling programs for that withering tree in the living room.

Burbank and Glendale trash collectors will pick up Christmas trees before 7 a.m. off the curb for the first two weeks of 2010, officials said.

Brace Canyon and Verdugo parks in Burbank have also been designated as recycling pick-up centers.

Trees taller than 8 feet must be cut in half, and officials said all drop-offs should be without ornaments and decorations.

Burbank picks up about 70 tons’ worth of Christmas trees every year. About one-third of the trees are chopped into mulch that’s spread around city property.

The city recycles wrapping paper as well, which can go in the usual blue bins. “We take clean dry paper of all types — cardboard, wrapping paper, magazines,” Hampel said. “The main thing for people to remember is clean, dry paper can be recycled.”

Glendale officials picked up more than 8,500 trees last year, but numbers have declined in recent years. READ MORE !

Green Day Planner: August 8

Household Hazardous Waste Roundup

August 8
9:00 am - 3:00 pm

Burbank Fire Department Training Center
1845 Ontario Street

Personal items which will be accepted include: paint, batteries, brake fluid, computer equipment, motor oil, and fluorescent light bulbs. Please bring your items in a sturdy box which you will leave at the site. There is a limit of 125 pounds per trip.

Items not accepted include: business waste, trash, tires, explosives, refrigerators, stoves, and controlled substances.

For more information, please call 1-800-238-0172.

Zero Waste Food Service - Burbank

Restaurant Waste Reduction Workshop
March 25, 2009: 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Hands-on, interactive workshop.
How to indentify, reduce and eliminate food service wastes.
Find out how others have reduced wastes.
Valuable information, resources and an action plan.

Seating Is Limited - Please RSVP by March 20th !

Community Services Building
1st Floor Community room
150 N Third
Burbank CA 91502

For more info, call: Burbank Recycle Center - 818 . 238 . 3900

Green Day Planner

E-Waste Recycling Event: March 21
Planet Green
20724 Lassen
Chatsworth CA 91311

Items collected include: monitors, computers, TV's, cell phones, printers, fax machines, video game consoles, DVDs and DVD players, CDs and CD players, laptops, ink and toner cartridges, keyboards, telephone equipment.

From: 10:00 am - 3:00 pm