CAPE COD CHRONICLE RECYCLING COLUMN

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Five Facts, Folks!

Building ChathamRecycles.org has been a little like cleaning out your grandmother's attic; push aside a rusty steamer and you're likely to uncover something amazing like a Ty Cobb baseball card or a previously unknown copy of the Bill of Rights.

And while we haven't come across any priceless heirlooms, we have unearthed some pretty amazing recycling facts -- fascinating tidbits that should embolden the resolve of those Chathamites who are already recycling while hopefully convincing other residents and businesses to reduce, re-use and recycle rather than just toss all that aluminum, glass, paper and newsprint into the landfill.

+ Massachusetts throws away 1.5 million tons of paper every year. If the Commonwealth recycled HALF of this paper, we would save nearly $52 million in disposal costs.

+ 19,000 people are employed at 1,400 recycling businesses and organizations in Massachusetts. These businesses have an annual payroll of $557 million and produce $3.5 billion in sales receipts.

+ Recycling helps Massachusetts residents reduce the equivalent of 2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually. That's like taking 1.6 million passenger cars off the road for a year.

+ Recycling in Massachusetts saves over 85 trillion BTUs of energy annually, enough to power 820,292 homes for one year.

+ Massachusetts recycled enough paper last year to prevent the cutting of nearly 17 million trees.

The facts are pretty compelling. Recycling saves money, reduces pollution and conserves energy. We're fortunate in Chatham to have an amazing Recycling Center, so look around your home or business and take a look at what you can start recycling today.

But if you find a Ty Cobb baseball card? You're gonna want to make sure you hang on to that.

ChathamRecycles.org

spot illustration © 2007 by Bob Staake - All Rights Reserved

article by BS