Green Living Newsletter

Special Delivery! Tips for How to Properly Recycle Cardboard Boxes

We all love getting a package in the mail - especially around the holidays - but are we recycling our cardboard boxes and inside packing materials correctly? Much of our online shopping packaging consists of corrugated cardboard shipping boxes. Recycling these boxes decreases solid waste disposal in landfills, provides new fiber to make new paper products, uses less raw material and energy, and creates jobs. In 2017, the recycling industry collected, sorted and processed $8.1 billion worth of recycled fiber, creating jobs and supporting the economy.

How to Properly Recycle a Cardboard Box

• Remove all packing materials like packing peanuts, bubble wrap, and air pillows from the box. These packing materials cannot be recycled in your home recycling program, even if the recycling symbol is printed on the material. Bubble wrap and air pillows are recyclable, but require separate recycling programs. These materials are film plastics and can be recycled at separate drop off locations found at many retail stores that accept other film plastic like plastic bags. Learn more about film plastic recycling and drop off locations near you.
• Keep it flat. Keep scissors handy to cut through tape, and collapse boxes flat. Flat boxes make transportation and sorting more efficient for recycling. If there is any loose tape, peel it off and dispose of it in the trash.
• Keep it clean & dry. All cardboard that goes in your household recycling bin should be clean and dry- free of food, liquid and other residues.
• Feel good. Recycling right feels good! Step back and admire your empty, flat boxes and leave your wish-cycling guilt behind!

We All Live in a Watershed Poster Contest

DEC and the New York Water Environment Association is holding a We All Live in a Watershed poster contest. This poster contest is designed to encourage middle school students to learn about the watersheds where they live and how to conserve and protect these water resources.

Students may use any type of media, including watercolor, pen and ink, crayon, chalk, and markers to create original hand-drawn artwork. We will choose 14 winning posters and compile them for distribution as part of a 2021 calendar.

All middle school students (Grades 6-8) in New York State public and private schools are eligible to enter the poster contest. One student per poster may enter. We must receive all posters by Friday, January 10, 2020. For more details, please visit the the poster contest website.

Take a (First Day) Hike

Mark your calendars—the First Day Hike Program is back, and DEC encourages all outdoor enthusiasts to join in the fun of this growing New Year’s Day tradition of welcoming in the new year with a hike. Since its inception in 2012, tens of thousands of people have made First Day Hikes an annual event, heading outdoors on January 1st to enjoy the beauty and wonders of nature. Each year, the program offers exciting new destinations—the number of participating sites has grown from 18 in 2012 to more than 60 this year. No matter where you live, you can find a First Day Hike to start off your New Year in style. Visit DEC’s website (calendar of events will be updated once information becomes available) or the State Parks’ website for times and locations, and then get ready to have fun on New Year’s Day!

Citizen Science: New Year’s Bird Count

On Wednesday, Jan. 1, from 9 a.m. to noon, join local bird experts for the 39th annual New Year’s Day bird survey at Five Rivers Environmental Education Center in Delmar. Seventy-one different species have been found at Five Rivers on Albany’s “First Morning,” and many bird species identified over the decades of this long-term study show interesting range changes. Bring binoculars if you have them and dress warmly. If severe weather is forecast, call Five Rivers (518-475-0291) before 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, December 31 to confirm the event will be held. For more information, see DEC’s website.

Upcoming Events

Guided Walk – Old Field Trail
12/14 at 10 a.m., Five Rivers Environmental Education Center

Make a Reusable Bag
12/14 1 p.m. - 3 p.m., Reinstein Woods

Family Fun – Monday Funday Explorers
12/23 at 1 p.m., Five Rivers Environmental Education Center

How to Do It – Winter Tree Identification
12/28 2 p.m., Five Rivers Environmental Education Center

Other Upcoming DEC Events