Garbage Facts:

The United States generates approximately 208 million tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) a year. That's 4.3 pounds per person per day.

In one year Americans throw away 1.6 billion ballpoint pens, 2 billion razors, and 16 billion diapers.

Americans throw away enough aluminum every three months to rebuild our entire commercial air fleet.

American's throw away enough office and writing paper annually to build a wall 12 feet high stretching from Los Angeles to New York City.

Every Sunday, the United States wastes nearly 90% of the recyclable newspapers. This wastes about 500,000 trees!

Every year we dispose of 24 million tons of leaves and grass clippings, which could be composted to conserve landfill space.

Decompose time:
Orange and Banana peels: 3-4 weeks
Wool socks: 1-5 years
Cigarette Butts: 1-5 years
Plastic coated Paper: 5 years
Plastic Bags: 10-20 Years
Plastic Film Containers: 20-30 Years
Nylon Fabric: 30-40 Years
Leather: up to 50 years
Tin cans: 90 years
Plastic 6-Pack Holders: 100 Years
Aluminum Cans and tabs: 200-500 Years
Glass Bottles: 1,000 Years
Plastic Bottles and styrofoam: 1 million

Recycle Facts:

If everyone in the U.S. recycled just 1/10
of their newsprint, we would save the
estimated equivalent of about 25 million
trees a year.

Approximately 200 miles of concrete
pavement are recycled each year

Old scrap paper of all kinds can be used to
make new paper towels and tissues, egg cartons, fruit trays and flower pots.

Old toy boxes or shoe boxes can become new cereal and soap boxes, soft drink cartons and pizza boxes.

Recycled pop bottles can be used in carpets, fiberfill for pillows, sleeping bags and ski jackets, and can also be made into T-shirts, sweaters, automotive parts, and floor tiles.

It takes 2 plastic soft drink bottles to make enough polyester fiber for a baseball cap.

Motor oil never wears out, it just gets dirty. Oil can be recycled, re-refined and used again, reducing our reliance on imported

Recycling all of your home's waste newsprint, cardboard, glass, and metal can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 850 pounds a year.

Enough energy is saved by recycling one aluminum can to run a TV set for three hours or to light one 100 watt bulb for 20 hours.

You can make 20 cans out of recycled material with the same amount of energy it takes to make one new one.