Environment

According to the EPA, the average person creates about 4.7 pounds of waste every day, but only about one-third of that is being recycled. The remainder is burned or makes its way into landfills.

While nearly 100 percent of lead acid batteries are recycled, only 35 percent of metals and 54 percent of paper products are finding their way into the recycling chain.

There are some significant benefits associated with recycling. The EPA reports that in 2007, recycling efforts saved the equivalent of 10.7 billion gallons of gasoline and prevented the release of carbon dioxide of approximately 35 million cars.

Each ton of mixed paper that is recycled can save the energy equivalent to 185 gallons of gasoline. Recycling one ton of aluminum cans conserves the equivalent of 1,665 gallons of gasoline.

To bring this down to personal level, recycling one aluminum beverage container can save enough energy to power a television for three hours. Once recycled, that container may come back to you as aluminum foil, another soda can or even your auto license plate. That same can, sent to a landfill, will take 80 to 100 years to decompose.

FREE 1 DayRecycling EducationSummer Camp from Escambia Recycles

*Picture courtesy of Escambiarecycles.com

When:

June 9: 9am-3pm

July 8: 9am-3pm

July 22: 9am-3pm

July 29: 9am-3pm

August 3: 9am-3pm

August 5: 9am-3pm

August 12: 9am-3pm

Where:

Perdido Landfill

13009 Beulah Road
Cantonment, FL 32533-8831

Why:

Escambia County's Recycling Program wants to put your kids to good use. Instead of staying at home and watching TV, kids learn about the process of recycling, participate in a recycling project, and take an eco-walk around the Perdido Riverwalk. Learning through experience helps to spark interest in kids' involvement with the environment, and will broaden their understanding of how our community uses trash

To register, please call: (850)937-2160

For more information on the camp, please visit:http://escambiarecycles.com/  

***Special Notes***

-Kids must wear closed toed shoes

-Kids must bring a lunch, snacks, and a reusable water bottle 

Who knew that the path of least resistance for lawn care could also be the most fruitful and inherently good one?

For many us, we have grown used to dedicating our Saturday mornings to the upkeep of our lawns which more often than not, includes many non-native, or foreign, plants. Foreign gardens, despite their beauty, often demand extra T.L.C.  from their keepers, money for maintenance supplies like fertilizer and pesticides, along with an increase in water usage, which native gardens do not require. The allure of growing beautiful non-native gardens is tempting because the resources to artificially sustain these plants can easily be found at any hardware or garden supplies store.

A natively landscaped yard in Tallahassee, FL. Photo courtesy of Floridayards.org

Luckily for us, we can use native landscaping to create gardens that are just as, if not more beautiful than those of the foreign gardens at the cost of the path of least resistance.

Remember what your mother always told you?

"If it sounds too good to be true, then it is."

Lies. 

Native Landscaping can be thought of as the divine path of least resistance because it is an easy method for creating beautiful lawns and gardens while benefiting the local environment and your wallet!

Native Plants help to...

-Save Water: Native plants are already acclimated to Northwest Florida's weather conditions, and typically do not require any more or less sun or water than what they already naturally receive. According to Floridayards.org, "Irrigation of lawns and landscaping in Florida represents the single largest use of water from our municipal water supplies.'

-Save Money: By eliminating the cost of pesticides, fertilizers, water, and other supplies needed to maintain foreign plants, you are able to keep more money in your pocket!

-Save Time:Native plants typically do not require as much time spent on maintenance than foreign plants. More free time= more beach time!

For more information about native landscaping and finding flora to suit your yard, please click here.

For more helpful DIY "green" tips, please visit our our Environmental Goals and Results page