YOUR LOCAL RECYCLING RESOURCE

Supporting Kingwood and the greater Lake Houston Area
June 2015

Recycle Right or Not At All

Be sure you know what to recycle and what NOT to recycle

Those are pretty tough words coming from Keep Kingwood Green. We advocate and educate about recycling. That is what we do! We are all volunteers and don’t make a penny if you recycle or don’t.

Unfortunately the recycling businesses that do try to make a profit are having a tough time right now. There have been recent articles in the Houston Chronicle and the Wall Street Journal about the problems that Waste Management is having.

Right now, the economics of recycling are bad and getting worse.

In a word, the problem is contamination. Too many of the materials they are receiving are contaminated. The industry knows that to get participation in recycling they have to make it easy. How much easier can it be than one bin for trash and one bin for recyclables?

Contamination happens when you put something in a bin that is not supposed to be there. It may be a food contaminated container. It may be film plastic from the bag you took your items in and then threw into a bin. Contamination happens sometimes because we don't know what to recycle.

Of course, there are some people who just don’t care. It is not uncommon for bags of trash to be put into any publically accessed recycling bin. Depending on what is in the bag, the whole bin may be contaminated.

Most of us want to do the right thing. If we want to keep the “EASY” methods of recycling we have become accustomed to, we need to help the recycling companies.

Do the following:
1. Make sure what goes into your curbside container is what is on the list of accepted items.
2. If you use the City’s Park and Ride bins, do the same. (no film plastic in any bin and sort your items unless the packer truck is there).
3. Help educate people you see who are doing something wrong. Maybe they don’t know.
4. Always break down cardboard boxes. If you don’t, you are taking up valuable space in the bin and causing a big truck to make a trip that may not be necessary.

If you have questions about what goes into your bin or a public bin, call your recycling company and ask them. Or, send us an e-mail at info@keepkingwoodgreen.org and we will answer your question or find the answer for you.

E-cycle The First Saturday of Every Month!

It is that simple to remember! Compucycle comes to Kingwood the First Saturday of Every month to collect your old and discarded electronics.

In almost three years, come Hell (is that the heat we have in August?) or High Water (yes, we have had some of that recently) they have been here for three and one half years collecting things that should never go to the landfill.

During that time they have collected 384 tons worth! They love to repurpose old computers and the parts in them but will also take almost any electronics including small TV’s.

Click here to see what they will accept.

The service is free and is held at the Kingwood Metro lot at Lake Houston Parkway and Chestnut Ridge.

Also on this day, Pete from Junky Business will be at the same site from 2 PM until 3 PM to collect small appliances, scrap metal, large appliances, and anything that has a motor or engine in it.

You can drop these items off after 9 AM at a spot near the e-waste collection but you will have to unload them yourself if it is before 2 PM. (So, best to bring large appliances or heavy objects after 2 PM) This service is also free or you can have Pete pick them up at your home for a fee. Call 832-377-5865 with questions or for pick-up service.

Please note: neither of these companies can take light bulbs including fluorescent bulbs and they can’t take glass coffee maker pots or the glass from a blender or other small appliances. Unfortunately that is trash. Fluorescent tubes and other hazardous waste should be taken back to the retailer you buy the replacement from or to the City of Houston ESC. See this site for the items they accept.

Home Composting Made Simple

Join Keep Kingwood Green at the Kingwood Library on Saturday, June 20 from 10:30 AM until 11:45 for a program about composting in YOUR backyard.

Up to 30% of the trash in the Lake Houston Area is “green waste”. If it is put at the curb, it most likely will be taken to the Atascocita landfill. Think of the expense of the fertilizers, mulches and water you have used to grow your lawn, trees and gardens.

Doesn’t it make sense to compost them right on your property and use them to feed your next generation of grass, plants, and trees? You can save those nutrients from the landfill!