Dear Recycle Lady

Dear Recycle Lady

This column relates to recycling policies, procedures, tips, tricks and more for recycling programs in Greenbrier County, WV. Other programs and facilities in other locales may operate based on different approaches. Also please be advised, the market and technologies are ever evolving, and all information posted here is subject to change. Keep up the Good Fight! Going Green, Works!

Dear Happy Recycler,

I’m happy to hear that you are reusing the Styrofoam peanuts. Your suggestion to use air-popped popcorn as packing material is a great idea. If you find that you have more Styrofoam peanuts than you can use, they can be taken to PostNet on US 219 North. They reuse them for the packages they ship. They also accept plastic pillows and bubble wrap. The environment benefits from using as few of these particular contaminants as possible. Styrofoam is one of the worst offenders. Because of its light weight, it is often blown by the wind into bodies of water and into the soil causing problems for both the marine and wildlife. It doesn’t ever decompose. It stays in the environment for hundreds of thousands of years and it crumbles easily into small pieces, making it more likely that birds and fish will eat it. Three cheers for Maine and Maryland that have banned the use of Styrofoam. I hope West Virginia will consider banning it soon.

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Dear Recycle Lady is sponsored jointly by the Greenbrier Recycling Center and Greenworks Recycling.