Bethlehem Goes Green! Recycling & Green Living Tips

Albany Freecycle: Give-Get Stuff for Free

Freecycle.org is a non-profit movement of people all over the world who are giving and getting stuff for free.

Locally, there's an Albany, New York Freecycle group with over 4,000 members.

Members offer or request items such as:

• furniture: tables, chairs, beds, couches
• kitchen appliances: large and small from stoves to microwaves to blenders
• clothing: adult and children
• toys
• perrennials
• animals and accessories: free kittens and dogs, dog crates
• you name it

It's free to join and once you do you'll have access to the local Yahoo group where all the items are posted. As with all online groups, there are rules to follow and all items must be free. An online moderator helps keep all postings on track.

Instead of throwing out stuff you no longer want or use, offer it up on Freecycle and see if there are any takers. Your stuff doesn't always need to be in great condition; there are people who love to refinish or recover furniture or tinker with broken cameras, camcorders or other electronics. Whatever you do, never throw electronic items in the trash. Save it for the Town of Bethlehem's annual electronic recycling day which occurs in October.

The goal is to keep perfectly usuable items out of our landfills. Here is Freecycle's mission:

"Our mission is to build a worldwide gifting movement that reduces waste, saves precious resources & eases the burden on our landfills while enabling our members to benefit from the strength of a larger community."

Join Albany New York's local chapter of Freecycle and do your part to reduce the stuff in our landfills.

How Recycling Reduced My Trash by Fifty Percent

Recycling paper packaging from the dozens of products that enter our home each week helps reduce our trash by at least 50%. 

Instead of tossing the paper packaging, break it down and set it aside in a large bin or bag and then every few weeks bring it to the park and ride lot at the end of Rte 32 bypass. Look for a big bin labeled GreenFiber.

Once you start paying closer attention, you might be amazed how many of the products you buy contain paper packaging. Here, in this picture, is a small sampling of some of the products we buy that contain paper packaging.

Here's a sampling of what GreenFiber collects:

• newspapers
• cereal boxes
• brown paper bags
• paper packaging
• magazine
• phone books
• office paper
• cardboard

It's so easy to recycle this paper. Instead of throwing it away, we just fold it and set it aside in a big bag. Then, every few weeks when I'm heading to the Town Park, Line Drive ball fields, or a friends house, I make a quick stop at the park and ride bins and empty the bag into the Green Fiber bin.

Best of all, a company called GreenFiber takes the cardboard from bins all over the  country and turns it into natural fiber insulation for your home or business! That's right, you can head right over to Lowes in Glenmont and buy it. Very cool.

Looking to go green in your business? Call GreenFiber and ask about their recycling plan where they pay you for your paper. They'll even bring a bin to your business.