<b>Dear Recycle Lady,</b><span style="font-weight: 400"> </span> <span style="font-weight: 400">I have several very used gardening tools, such as hoes, spades, that are metal. Can they be recycled? </span> <i><span style="font-weight: 400">Recycling Gardner</span></i> <b>Dear Recycling Gardner,</b> <span style="font-weight: 400">Absolutely. Your gardening tools can be recycled with metal. When you take them to the Recycle Center, go to the door for Aluminum cans and press the button. Someone will come assist you.</span> <b>Dear Recycle Lady,</b> <span style="font-weight: 400">Why is there so much concern over plastics in the ocean? Don’t they just sink to the bottom of the ocean and be gone? </span> <i><span style="font-weight: 400">Love the Ocean</span></i> <b>Dear Love the Ocean,</b> <span style="font-weight: 400">We all should be concerned about the accumulation of plastics in our oceans and waterways. One of the biggest concerns is the health and well-being of the ocean itself. Another concern is all the marine life in the ocean that get entangled in anything with handles, such as plastic bags and 6-pack plastic rings. Also, they eat the bags, straws, cups, etc., thinking these items are food, and many suffer damage or die. In addition to the harm to marine life is the amount of plastic accumulating in the oceans. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, located between Hawaii and California, is twice the size of Texas. This Garbage Patch is dense and several yards deep beneath the surface. Fortunately, there are countries, businesses, organizations, and individuals who are concerned and trying to find solutions. For example, Chile’s legislature has unanimously passed a plastic regulation law that will reduce the country’s plastic waste by more than 23,000 tons a year! This new law targets the food industry’s use of single-use plastics and introduces a certification for compostable plastics. Also, Starbucks South Korea has announced that it will eliminate all single-use disposable cups by 2025. Customers will pay a small deposit for a reusable cup that is refunded when they return the cup. Even Barbie is going green! The toy company Mattel has launched its first doll made from recycled ocean-bound plastic. The Barbie Loves the Ocean Collection launch is in line with Mattel’s goal to achieve 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastic materials across all its products and packaging by 2030.</span> <b>Dear Readers, </b> <span style="font-weight: 400">According to a study published in Nature, human-made materials now outweigh living things for the first time ever. Humans have added approximately 1.1 teratonnes (1.1 teratonnes = 1,212,542,442,016.8 tons) of concrete, metal, plastic, buildings, machines, etc. to the Earth’s biomass. In 2020, Earth was at the crossover point. We have now exceeded it. Please protect our Earth. Recycle everything you can. Reuse what you have. Reduce purchases and waste. Every tiny step will have a big impact over time. </span> <b>RECYCLE WORKSHOP</b><span style="font-weight: 400"> - Friday, July 16, any time from 10 a.m. to 12 noon, for information, discussion, and demonstrations on recycling at the Greenbrier Recycling Center, Monroe Avenue, Ronceverte, WV. Come join us. We would love to see you!</span> <span style="font-weight: 400">Have questions about recycling, or interesting information about recycling? Send questions or requests to recyclelady@greenbrier-swa.com. Dear Recycle Lady is sponsored jointly by the Greenbrier Recycling Center and Greenworks Recycling.</span>
