What's New in Green News?

Interested in the latest recycling news? Check out the following headlines.

Landfill GTE project to produce energy for 1,000 homes

St. Joseph, Mo., is partnering with Kansas City Power & Light to create a landfill gas-to-energy project at a 90-acre landfill. According to experts, the project will produce enough power to benefit 1,000 residences. Read more about it here.

Arizona Votes to Fill Old Mine Shafts with Scrap Tires

In a controversial decision, Arizona state lawmakers voted to get rid of old tires by stuffing them down abandoned mines. Environmental activists are concerned about the risk of underground fires and water contamination, but proponents of the decision say that it's an inexpensive way to close off dangerous shafts. Check out the full story here.

Waste to Generate Significant Energy in Spain

University of Zaragoza (UNIZAR) researchers are continuing to study the use of waste in the generation of electricity. While solid waste seems to be the most cost-effective option, the study did not rule out water treatment sludge and livestock slurry as alternate energy sources. Find out more about the possibilities by clicking here.

Upcycling: Join the Club

If you’re interested in joining Cardella in our sustainable upcycling efforts, check out the following tips for repurposing your old household clutter.

1. Save cardboard TP and paper towel tubes to tidy your computer, phone and television cables. Still have leftovers? Send them to your child’s school for craft projects.

2. Salvage leftovers and food scrapings in an outdoor compost bin. When gardening time comes, composted waste makes powerful (and free) fertilizer.

3. While you may try hard to get off of junk mail lists, chances are you still get a catalog or two. Save them for school projects—or visit Planet Green for tips on turning old catalogs and magazines into bracelets, wallpaper and more.

4. Use plastic grocery bags to pad mailing boxes, cover bicycle seats when it rains or organize frozen vegetables and meats. If you’re crafty, you can even crochet bags into cool grocery totes, laundry room rugs and wallets.

5. Decoupage glass wine bottles and use them as flower vases and candle holders—or if you’re handy with tools, turn them into drinking glasses.

As you get creative with your upcycling efforts, remember to visit Cardella to discover more about how we’re reducing the waste stream, keeping the environment clean—and helping eco-friendly businesses reduce their carbon footprint.

Upcycling: A True Environmental Investment

If you’ve spent much time on our website (or hanging around our blog), you probably know that we’re huge fans of sustainable living. As a waste management company, we have a big responsibility—to reduce the waste stream and help companies build green by recycling and upcycling as much as we can.

Not familiar with the term upcycle? Think of it as “repurposing” your junk. So…instead of your glass water bottle being melted down and formed into a new water bottle—you paint your glass bottle and call it a bud vase.

At Cardella, we’ve taken upcycling to a new level. Partnering with Scrapile, a NYC company, we pass along wood leftovers from construction sites. Then Carlos and Bart, Scrapile’s resident artists, upcycle the discarded wood scraps to create innovative bench, table and accessory designs. Browse their website and you’ll find that their pieces are better than any furniture available at the retail store!

We’re proud of our collaborative upcycling efforts. If you’re interested in becoming part of the green revolution, tune in to next week’s blog for tips about how to salvage your household junk through creative upcycling.

Cardella is Going Green

If your facility uses fluorescent bulbs to light workspaces, retail environments and warehouses, you know that they can be difficult to throw away. Fluorescents are made with mercury, an element associated with neurological problems in both adults and children. These bulbs are regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and cannot be thrown in solid waste containers or sent to landfills. When bulbs are broken, mercury vapor is released into the air, increasing the chances of environmental pollution and mercury-related health conditions.

To help you safely dispose of the fluorescent bulbs used in your business, Cardella offers a new bulb recycling service. Customers can order prepaid EasyPak boxes online or over the phone. These EasyPak boxes are custom containers designed to securely transport your old bulbs so they can be safely recycled—with no danger to you or the environment.

Interested? Call today to inquire about eco-friendly bulb disposal—or to order EasyPak boxes designed for battery and electronics recycling, too. It’s just one more way that Cardella is going green—and serving our valued customers in New York and New Jersey.

Saving Money

Joining today’s “Green Movement” may be great for the environment, but did you know your pocketbook can benefit, as well? Here are a few ideas to stretch your 2010 budget while reducing the waste stream and protecting precious natural resources.

1. Need some NEW old things to replace your OLD old things? Visit Freecycle.org, where you’ll find a network of residents trading their goods to keep reusable “stuff” out of our landfills. Save money on furniture, clothing, landscaping décor and more. You may even find a hidden treasure worth more than you bargained for!


2. Find household uses for those pesky plastic bags. Bathroom trashcan liners, pet clean-up and muddy shoe covers are just some of the ways you can breathe new life into old grocery bags.


3. This year, keep in touch with family and friends using recycled postcards. By cutting the front off of greeting cards you receive, you’ll save money on both cards and postage. Remember, USPS postcard size guidelines are as follows:
   
   
   
   • Minimum size: 3.5 inches tall by 5 inches long
   
   
   • Maximum size: 4.25 inches tall by 6 inches long
   
   

It’s a great year to think green. When you look around your home and discover items that can be reused, you’ll be saving not only the environment—but your hard-earned cash, as well. And in this economy—that’s good news.

Happy New Year from Cardella!

If you’ve been considering Cardella for your waste management and recycling needs, but haven’t made the switch, here are 5 merry and bright reasons to join the Cardella family.

1. A leading NY/NJ provider of solid waste management, we offer services for commercial, construction and residential clients.



2. We’re experts in LEED requirements, partnering with hundreds of construction clients to create Green, sustainable buildings by recycling and reusing construction waste.



3. We operate a 24,000-square-foot materials recovery facility that’s licensed by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. This fully-equipped green campus is designed to help us reduce the waste stream through sustainable industry practices.



4. No matter when you need them, we’ll promptly deliver and pickup any container from our fully stocked inventory. Containers include roll-off, rear-load, front-load and mini models, and custom compactor services are available upon request.



5. When construction companies rely on Cardella, there’s no need for an array of recycling containers. Place your waste in just one bin—and we’ll do the rest.

Interested? Call (800) 548-7001 or email our customer service specialists for information about service zones, pickup schedules, recycling consultations and disposal fees. We look forward to serving you in 2010.

Peaceful, green holidays from Cardella!

To get in the holiday spirit, we recently sponsored the New Jersey U.S. Green Building Council’s 8th annual holiday celebration (Mon., Dec. 7). This is the first year the event has been held at Gladstone’s elegant Hamilton Park Golf Club, situated on 600 acres complete with USGA-rated golf courses, fine dining and luxury entertainment venues.
Joined by USGBC-NJ members from all over the area, the Cardella family gathered to celebrate the achievements that emerged in the midst of 2009’s marketplace difficulties.

We hope you’ll join us in preparing for an exciting, prosperous 2010. As the end of this year approaches, we’d like to wish all of you—our customers, families and friends—health, happiness and business success in the year to come. Enjoy the season.