Comments on: Recycling your bottles and cans? Get a reward from RecycleBank

By: Diane MacEachern

Diane MacEachern — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 18:12:16 +0000

Jan,
From what I understand, the point of RecycleBank right now is to capture as much of the waste stream as possible so that those materials can be used in place of virgin materials. I, too, think it’s important to tell people first and foremost to reduce the amount they consume – and therefore, the amount they throw away. But I also think it’s important to capture as much waste as possible. When manufacturers replace virgin materials with recycled ones, they consume less at the production end, and that’s valuable. Thanks for writing.

By: Beth

Beth — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:41:01 +0000

I have been following this program for a while now, I just wish it would come to the west coast.

By: Jan

Jan — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:38:43 +0000

I like your site, but I’m questioning this post. How does this program help us to consume less?
A few points…
1. A new recycle bin for every household is a waste (if they already have one, that is).
2. What are the gains? Will this program really recruit new recyclers, as compared to the standard community recycling program?
3. If you can get rewards for recycling, will that trump the ‘rewards’ for reusing that old peanut butter jar, or choosing products with less packaging? Recycling should be the last step, not the first.
4. This program lets companies slap their logo on a ‘green’ program, while giving us points towards consumer products we might not have bought otherwise.