Here to help!
With so many resources available, you could look for hours and still not find what you need. That’s why our dedicated staff has put together a list of resources and helpful links.
Complete the Circle
PRESERVE NATURAL RESOURCES
By making products from recycled materials instead of raw materials, we reduce the need to cut down trees, drill for oil and dig for minerals.
REDUCE ENERGY USE
It takes less energy to make recycled products. Making new aluminum from recycled aluminum, for example, takes 95% less energy to make than new aluminum from bauxite ore.
SAVE DISPOSAL SPACE
When the materials you recycle go into new products, they don’t go into landfills or incinerators. As a result, Indiana’s disposal space is conserved.
CREATE JOBS & SAVE MONEY
The recycling process creates more jobs than landfills and incinerator businesses. And recycling reduces money spent for energy, air and water protection, and disposal costs.
How can you buy more
recycled products?
READ LABELS
Look for the words “recycled content” or “made from recycled materials” and buy those products. Ask the businesses you shop at for recycled-content products. Encourage store managers to order more. You can call manufactures to express your preferences, too. In most cases, a package label will include the product-maker’s toll free number for questions and comments.
SAFE BETS
The following five types of packaging can always be counted on to have a high percentage of post-consumer recycled content, even if they’re not labeled as recycled:
Aluminum beverage cans: About 50% of the aluminum in beverage cans comes from used cans that were collected for recycling, melted and made into new cans.
Glass bottles and jars: Up to 25% of the glass in bottles and jars has been used at least once and remanufactured
“Tin” (steel) cans: So-called “tin” cans are actually made of steel, usually with a thin coating of tin. About 28% of the total content is recycled steel, half of that being post-consumer.
Molded pulp containers: Cardboard flower pots, fruit trays and egg cartons are made from recycled newspaper and cardboard that is re-pulped and re-shaped.
Corrugated boxes: Corrugated boxes are second next to aluminum cans when it comes to recycling. In 2007, 78% of the United States’ corrugated cardboard boxes were recycled. These boxes are the world’s leading shipping and merchandising material.
Shopping Ideas for Products and Packaging Made from Recycled Materials
HOME
- Buy local to save shipping and fuel costs
- Buy used or rent big items when possible.
- Shop with reusable shopping bags.
- Look for items sold in recyclable packaging.
- Reuse packaging containers.
- Avoid impulse buys.
- Cut down on utility use such as water and electricity.
AUTOMOTIVE
- Look for products with recycled packaging.
- Look for eco-friendly products.
- Recycle your used oil and antifreeze. The Recycling District accepts both of these during regular business hours.
- Drive the speed limit.
- Keep your tires properly inflated.
LAWN & GARDEN
- Go organic! By using fewer chemicals and composting, the soil is healthier and your plants will grow better.
- Use mulch in your landscaping, which is a sustainable way to enhance the look of your yard and garden.
- Plant native species as often as you can.
- Grow your own food and flowers by planting vegetables that you and your family enjoy and planting perennials such as hostas, peonies, and daylilies.
- Use an electric or manual lawn mower.
HOLIDAYS & SPECIAL OCCASIONS
- Use non-traditional materials to wrap gifts.
- Choose paper with no foil or glitter design if you must use wrapping paper. Wrapping paper with foil or glitter can not be recycled.
- Use foil cut out designs on string instead of tinsel. Tinsel is not recyclable.
- Repair old light strands instead of throwing them away and buying new lights. Replacement bulbs are much cheaper than replacing an entire strand of lights.
- Check thrift stores for used decorations.
- Give useful and practical gifts or try giving experiences instead of gifts. A trip to the zoo, a museum, or a concert will create fun memories.
- Give homemade treats instead of store bought items.
OFFICE & SCHOOL SUPPLIES
- Buy items that are recyclable: paper, pens, file folders, etc.
- Look for sustainably-made products using pre and post-consumer materials.
- Shop for large items in thrift shops like desks, desk chairs and filing cabinets.
- Look for items made from sustainable materials like bamboo.
CLOTHING & ACCESSORIES
- Look in thrift shops for clothes or special outfits.
- Use reusable bags when shopping.
- Shop for products made with sustainable fabric.
- Rent outfits for special occasions or look for programs that reuse formal clothing, such as The Cinderella Project that provides used prom dresses.
- Choose timeless styles over trendy styles.
- Shop local.
PARKS & RECREATION
- Visit local parks and state parks.
- Play outside.
- Picnic with sustainable items
- Pack your car with food and snacks in reusable containers when going on a road trip.