We don’t like nasty habits -- especially actions that are detrimental for the environment. One such habit that we’d love to see more people kick, is the practice of using single-use plastic bags. We know old habits are hard to kick but with small changes like bringing reuseable bags into our daily lives, we all can make a huge difference in the future of our environment.

According to the Algalita Foundation, a group which monitors oceanic water quality, half of all debris in our seas comes from plastics that are not properly disposed. These plastics will pollute waters for hundreds of years and eventually kills marine life that often confuse floating plastics for food sources.

Let’s help our local waterways and ocean friends and boot the plastic bag habit in our communities. We hope the video below serves as inspiration to kick that “plastic state of mind” and embrace reusable bags. The environment will certainly thank you.

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What did you think of the video? Funny, inspiring, or clever? Share your thoughts with us! Also, tune in next week for some for some big news. We’re launching an exciting reusable bag campaign!

Phonebooks are thick in these parts, with many pages full of names, addresses, Yellow Pages and much more. They are also updated annually, which means phonebooks tend to build up after a few years.
So, what do we do with all those old pages? Sure, we can recycle our phonebooks, which is highly recommended. But for those that are a bit more craft inclined there are other ways to repurpose your old phonebook.

We recently stumbled upon The Swell Life, a blog by Alexa Westerfield, where she documents how she turned her telephone book into a lampshade. That’s right, in nine easy steps she created a lampshade that would make virtually any room shine!

So light up the New Year, and visit The Swell Life to learn more.
 
Have another suggestion for breathing new life into your outdated phonebook? Share it with us in the comments section below!

Glass is all around us. It’s in our cars, our homes and our workplaces. There is no question that it is part of our daily lives in its many forms. Fortunately, unlike so many of the items we consume and use frequently, glass is 100% recyclable and often reusable.

Nonetheless, glass products make up a lot of industrial waste in our country and throughout the world. The United States is just now starting to catch up to places like Germany and England with the rates of our glass recycling, and with your help we can get even better!
 
Fortunately, here in San Bernardino County, recycling our glass bottles and containers is easy to do! Here’s how your household can properly recycle glass products:
 
*Glass can be placed in your curbside recycling bin
*Please empty and remove all lids
*Not all glass is created equal: keep mirrors, light bulbs, dishes, windows or ceramics out of your recycling bin. If these items are in good condition, donate them to your local thrift store. Burned out light bulbs should be taken to your nearest Household Hazardous Waste facility.

 
Pretty simple right? Well, that’s our goal anyway, and we hope as a result you will do your part to recycle glass bottles and containers. Let us know the latest glass product that made it into your recycling bin in the comment section below. To learn more about recycling, visit our recycling page.