For release: November 9, 1998

Contact: Bob Ballou, 222-4700, ext. 4420

Bill Pett, 222-3434, ext. 4417

Events are planned across the state from November 12 to 15 to celebrate the second annual Rhode Island Recycles Day, November 15. Part of a nationwide celebration, Rhode Island Recycles Day reminds Rhode Islanders of the importance of recycling for the environment and what they can do to support recycling. This year's theme is: "If You're Not Buying Recycled, You're Not Really Recycling."

According to DEM Director Andy McLeod, "Recycling is a valuable step on the way to a sustainable economy and environment because it saves energy and resources while creating new jobs and putting new products into the market. However, we have more to do to make recycling work. Rhode Islanders are doing a great job of putting materials out in the blue bins, but we must buy more products made from recycled materials to close the recycling loop. Real recycling is when we buy new products made of the materials we put out in our blue."

Janet Keller, DEM's Chief of the Office of the Planning and Policy Office that includes the OSCAR Program (Ocean State Cleanup and Recycling), stresses that many attractive and affordable recycled products are on the market today. "People used to think that recycled products were second rate, but that's certainly not true today. We use recycled content paper at DEM--from ordinary paper to feed the copying machine to fine paper for published materials--and get great results. When recycling first became popular, recycled papers were a specialty purchase, available at gift shops at premium prices. Now, with recycled paper in wide use, prices have come down. That's one reason we encourage Rhode Islanders to buy recycled products--strong demand drives prices down.

"Products made of recycled materials are readily available," adds Keller. "Glass and metal products and some kinds of cardboard commonly include recycled content whether they are labeled recycled or not. Plastic lumber, typically made from the plastic jugs and bottles we recycle at home, is being used more often, and DEM is using plastic lumber to build a new deck at Misquamicut Beach in Westerly. While plastic lumber is not yet as cheap to purchase as the equivalent wood product, in the long run it tends to be cheaper because less maintenance is required and because it lasts longer. The plastic benches that are starting to appear in parks do not have to be cleaned and coated every year and they last a lot longer than wood benches because plastic doesn't break down in human lifetimes. That's what makes it such a useful material for outdoor uses."

Perhaps the most remarkable story is the transformation of soda bottle plastic into fibers which are now widely used to make clothing," Keller concludes. "We'll be showing beautiful sweaters, fleece garments for the winter, and socks made out of soda bottle fiber at the Rhode Island Recycles Day fashion show at the Rhode Island Mall in Warwick on Saturday, November 14 beginning at one pm. This will be a great chance for people to come and see the range of clothing made out of yesterday's trash."

To encourage Rhode Islanders to make a commitment to recycling, Rhode Island Recycles Day offers a chance to win great prizes. Everyone who signs a card pledging to buy recycled, recycle more and/or support a recycling event is entered in a statewide drawing to win a bicycle, a gift certificate to Trinity Rep, a suitcase and many other prizes. Entrants are also eligible for a national drawing for a trip to Disney World and for the grand prize (age 18 and over only): the American Dream Green House, to be built for the winner out of recycled and energy-efficient products. In addition, the first 100 Rhode Islanders to take the pledge at each of our events will receive a shopping bag made from recycled plastic, courtesy of the American Plastics Council.

Rhode Island Recycles Day is sponsored by the Office of the Lieutenant Governor, the Department of Environmental Management, the Rhode Island Recycling Coalition and the Rhode Island Recycles Day Committee, as well as numerous corporate sponsors supporting individual events. For more information, please call the OSCAR Program at 401-222-3434. (Attached list of events provides more detail and local interest.)