Date:

November 15, 2007

For More Information Contact:

Diane Gonzolas, Citizen Information Center, 441-7831

Gene Hanlon, Recycling Coordinator, 441-7043

Mayor Chris Beutler invites the public to attend the celebration of America Recycles Day from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, November 17 at Midland Recycling, 440 “J” Street. At 2 p.m., the Mayor will make prize presentations and introduce Dr. R.E. Cycle, the new spokesperson for the City’s recycling efforts.

America Recycles Day is an annual nationwide event that encourages individuals, schools and businesses to recycle and buy recycled products. In Lincoln, the event will include tours of the City’s largest material recovery facility, educational displays and the making of recycled paper. Free hot dogs and refreshments will be available.

“Recycling is one of the easiest ways that all of us can conserve resources and make a difference,” said Mayor Beutler. “The celebration is a great way to learn more about recycling in a fun environment. I am especially looking forward to meeting the mysterious Dr. R.E. Cycle, Lincoln’s one and only professor of garbology.”

Dr. R.E. Cycle is being featured in the City’s newest recycling campaign, which will include public service announcements and billboards encouraging residents to “Do the Right Thing – the Recycle Thing.”

The celebration is the culmination of a month-long recycling effort in which local residents were asked to make pledges to increase their recycling efforts and buy recycled content products. Nearly 3,000 pledges were received by local recyclers, businesses and schools. The pledges served as entry forms into a local drawing for prizes. Two grand prizes are being presented this year:

• A new I-phone, valued at $425, donated by Midland Recycling.
• A computer system, valued at $1,500, donated by Schrock Innovations. This prize comes with a year’s work of Internet service from Husker Access, valued at $300.

Other local youth prizes are a $100 Wal-Mart gift card and one year of curbside recycling, courtesy of Lincoln Journal Star Recycling. Other local adult prizes are a $100 Russ’s Market gift card; one year of curbside recycling, courtesy of Recycling Enterprises and Star City Recycling; and Nebraska Lottery scratch tickets.

“The City works with partners in the community to encourage recycling and to make drop-off sites convenient, but the amount of material recycled is really up to each resident,” said Gene Hanlon, City Recycling Coordinator. “Since 2000, the amount of material taken to our recycling drop-off sites has increased by 14.3 percent. In the last fiscal year, 7,075 tons of recyclable material was collected, an all-time high for the program.”

Hanlon said local residents are still throwing away more than 307,000 tons of garbage every year. Since 1960, the amount of trash generated by the average American every day has increased from 2.5 to 4.5 pounds.

Local sponsors of America Recycles Day are the City of Lincoln, Lincoln Public Schools, WasteCap Nebraska, Midland Recycling and the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ). The City receives funding for its recycling educational efforts from the Waste Reduction and Recycling Incentive Fund of the NDEQ.

The Recycling Office opened three new drop-off sites last year:

• Super Saver, 27th Street and Pine Lake
• North Star High School, 5801 North 33rd Street
• A & J Recycling Center, 3520 N. 20th Street.

More information about recycling is available on the City Web site, lincoln.ne.gov (keyword: recycling).