Thousands of local events will celebrate America Recycles Day

November 15 event aims to raise awareness of recycling and its accomplishments.

-- Packaging Digest, 11/12/2009 2:07:11 PM

November 15 is America Recycles Day, and to celebrate the occasion, nearly 750 local organizers have registered 2,375 recycling related events online at americarecyclesday.org. Thousands of organizations are being enlisted to participate in events from coast to coast, reaching millions of Americans with educational messages, drop-off programs, electronics collections, and more.

Visitors to AmericaRecyclesDay.org and event attendees are also being encouraged to take the Recycling Pledge - committing personally to recycle more in the coming year. Site visitors can also calculate the environmental impact of recycling efforts using the online "Conversionator" tool.

"Recycling has meaningful implications for energy conservation, natural resources protection, and ultimately reducing Greenhouse Gas emissions," said Matthew M. McKenna, president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful, Inc. "By celebrating America Recycles Day we are spreading the word that we all have a responsibility to support recycling through our daily choices and actions, including purchasing products manufactured from recycled materials."

November 15 is also a day for Americans to collectively celebrate the successes of recycling. The nation's composting and recycling rate rose from 7.7 percent of the waste stream in 1960 to 17 percent in 1990 and is currently hovering around 33 percent. Curbside recycling access has grown significantly over the same period.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the amount of energy saved last year alone from combined recycling efforts (aluminum and steel cans, plastic and glass containers, newsprint and corrugated packaging) was equivalent to the amount of gasoline used by almost 11 million cars, or the amount of electricity consumed by 17.8 million Americans in a year.