Recycle old toothbrushes

Preserve, which makes household products from recycled materials, has launching a new campaign to allow customers to mail back their toothbrushes for recycling.

The initiative is being launched with the help of consultancy firm Continuum, which helped Preserve roll out its "Gimme 5" #5 plastics recycling campaign at Whole Foods markets and other retailers.

In addition to the mail-back option for the toothbrushes, the product packaging was made lighter and now doubles as a mail back container when consumers are done with the toothbrush. Preserve recycles the toothbrushes into plastic building materials.

For more information on the company, which are available in grocery and natural food stores and retailers Whole Foods Market and Target, visit www.preserveproducts.com.

Waste recycling News

Converting Kitchen Waste To compost

Composting is a great way to recycle your kitchen and garden waste. Composting simply speeds up the decay of organic matter by using air, moisture and heat as tools

Dowinload E-book: How Make Compost @ Home

Make a compost bin or purchase one. The compost bin does not have to be fancy and it can be any shape. The best size for compost bins tends to be five feet wide and four feet deep.

1. You should place your compost bin in a handy location. Place your bin in a sunny area, if you have to place your compost bin in a shady area, you may want to invest in a compost thermometer to ensure that your compost maintains the proper temperature -- which is around 140 degrees.

2. You should have a large pile of dirt beside your compost bin. This will keep you from having to carry dirt to the compost bin every time you need it.

3. Lay a foundation in your compost bin. The foundation can be made up of twelve inches of grass clippings, or two feet of dead garden leaves.

4. Add waste from your kitchen and garden as you accumulate it. Kitchen waste can include coffee grounds, egg shells, tea bags, potato skins, fruits and vegetables. Avoid putting any meat or grease products into your compost pile. This will only attract animals.

5. When you have a good layer of kitchen and garden waste on top of the foundation, you should then add fertilizer to the mix.

6. Next, add ½ cup of limestone.

7. Then, add a layer of garden soil. You should then have layers which consist of the foundation, kitchen and garden waste, fertilizer, lime, and garden soil.

8. You will then want to water down your compost pile. It is important that your compost pile is kept moist at all times.

9. Finally, it is time to turn the compost pile. This is the most important part of the entire process. You should turn your compost every fifteen days. This heats up the compost and kills off any bad organisms. The heat will also kill any weeds that may want to sprout in your compost. The most important thing the heat does is speed up the decaying process.

10. Continue to add kitchen and yard waste as they accumulate.

11. Follow up your layer of kitchen and yard waste with fertilizer, lime, soil and water.

12. Lastly, do not forget to turn your pile every fifteen days.

Waste Collection & Treatment