Most appliances today are recycled and disposed of properly; even if the appliance is no longer working, there is cash value in the metal components. Typically, if you are having a new appliance delivered, the retailer or delivery service will haul away your old appliance for recycling for free or for a small fee. Otherwise, there are many locations all throughout Minnesota where you can drop off old appliances to be recycled. Check local listings online: search for your city and "appliance recycling" to find an appliance recycler near you, or contact your city or local waste hauler. Many communities' solid waste collection services also offer a curbside on-request large item removal or special "spring cleaning" collection day when large items like appliances are welcome; contact your city or local waste hauler to learn what opportunities exist in your neighborhood. You can also request information from your city or hauler to ensure that appliances collected on these occasions are properly recycled.

Batteries come in many types and some are more hazardous than others. Generally, non-rechargeable alkaline batteries are safe to throw away in your garbage, while lithium, rechargeable and "button" batteries should be recycled. It's easy -- batteries of many types are accepted for recycling at numerous retail stores in Minnesota, including Target, Walmart, Radio Shack, Batteries Plus, IKEA and many different auto parts stores. Check at the service desk for specific guidelines at a store near you.

Call2Recycle maintains a comprehensive directory of rechargeable battery donation sites -- this includes batteries for cell phones, laptop computers, power tools and digital cameras. Visit their website to search for locations near you, or call their toll-free number: 877-2-RECYCLE (877-273-2925).

Automotive batteries are also hazardous, and extremely easy to recycle. Any business that sells auto batteries are required by law to accept used batteries to recycle -- even if you aren't buying a new one from them. This includes repair shops as well as auto parts stores.

Finished with that bestseller? Many local libraries accept donations of used books -- maybe not for their stacks, but for fundraiser used book sales. You can also check with your local schools to see if they have used book sales. Otherwise, thrift stores and charities are happy to accept books in good reusable condition.

If you have books that are in too poor shape to donate and reuse, keep in mind that they can be a valuable resource of recyclable paper pulp! Paperback books, comic books and digest magazines are recyclable through your normal paper recycling collection in most communities. Hardcover books and textbooks can be recycled too -- just tear off the covers and any remaining cloth on the spine.

Bubble Wrap™ is actually a trademarked name for one type of "sealed air" packing material made to cushion items in shipping or transport. These plastic packing materials are typically made of a combination of different resin types, and are therefore not readily recyclable. But if you can't recycle, reuse! You can keep them out of the landfill by dropping them off at a collection site where they will be reused for packing and shipping. Shipping businesses like PakMail, The UPS Store or eBay consignment stores may accept clean, dry Bubble Wrap to be reused; contact a store near you to see if they accept donations. Sealed Air Corp., the manufacturer of Bubble Wrap, also accepts used Bubble Wrap to be recycled by mail; since the product is almost all air, shipping costs are minimal. For more information, visit the Sealed Air website.

Carpeting is often made from fibers which can be recycled into new plastic or plastic derived products. There are emerging markets for commercial quantities of used carpeting, even here in Minnesota! The Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) is a partnership between carpet manufacturers and government agencies to keep carpeting out of landfills. Visit the CARE website to learn more.

CARE's partner in Minnesota is Bro-Tex Inc. in St. Paul. Carpet can be dropped off at their St. Paul facility for a small fee (see website for current rate). Their website offers guidelines for what can and cannot be accepted; for instance, the carpet must be dry, and tied in rolls no longer than 6 feet. They do accept polyurethane foam padding, but no rubber padding or rubber-backed carpeting. You can also check with your county's recycling coordinator about other carpet recycling opportunities in your area.

If you have remnants of new carpeting (from replacing or from new construction) large enough to be useful to another homeowner, you can check with your nearest ReUse Center to see if they can accept it. The ReUse Center is dedicated to keeping good quality building materials and construction remnants (like doors, windows, lumber, cabinets, plumbing fixtures and flooring) out of our landfills, and donations may be tax-deductible. They do not accept used carpeting.

Cell phones and PDAs can and should be recycled when no longer being used. Many retailers who sell cell phones now accept old phones, PDAs and phone batteries for recycling: Best Buy, Office Depot, Sprint and Verizon stores, to name a few. Cell phones are also accepted at any Target store's guest services counter; any proceeds are donated to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

Call2Recycle maintains a comprehensive directory of cell phone donation sites. Visit their website to search for locations near you, or call their toll-free number: 877-2-RECYCLE (877-273-2925).

A number of charities exist which collect and redistribute cell phones to individuals who may not have reliable access to a telephone, like soldiers stationed abroad, victims of domestic violence, senior citizens, or people in developing countries. This is another option to keep cell phones out of landfills and provide a valuable service. If you do choose to donate old cell phones or PDAs, make sure that the recipient organization is a reputable charity.

It's happened to everyone -- you put the lights away one year, then bring them out the next year and somehow they don't work, they transformed into a tangled, wadded mess, with missing and broken bulbs. What do you do with them? Most people just throw them in the trash, but not anymore. Thanks to a partnership between the Recycling Association of Minnesota and other community organizations and businesses, you can recycle them! Holiday lights contain glass, aluminum and copper, all of which are recyclable. All you need to do is drop them off. You can also drop off old electrical extension cords. Some retailers will even offer a discount on new energy-efficient LED holiday lights when you recycle your old ones.

For drop-off locations and more information (available seasonally), visit Recycle Your Holidays.

Cleaning out your closet? The best option for clothing you consider the wrong size or style is reuse -- donate it to a local charity thrift shop. Typically if a thrift shop accepts your old clothing but later decides they can't sell it, it will be recycled. (Thrift shops accept all sorts of other materials too, of course.)

Another recycling option is to take clothing and shoes to a donation drop-box -- these kinds of drop-boxes can be found in the parking lots of churches and other businesses across the state. These drop-boxes benefit organizations like Disabled American Veterans, Courage Center, United Cerebral Palsy, local churches and other groups who do not have their own thrift stores. (Each drop-box will indicate its beneficiary). Clothing and shoes donated in these boxes are sorted, then some end up in second hand stores here in the U.S., some are sent to developing countries, and some are recycled into industrial rags or fiber. The beneficiary organizations are typically paid by the pound for these donations by the companies that collect them.

Electronics do not belong in the garbage. In fact, it's against Minnesota law (Minnesota State Statute 115A.9565) to dispose of certain electronic items in the trash. Electronic waste ("e-waste") must be properly recycled or disposed of, to keep dangerous chemicals and heavy metals like mercury out of our water and air.

Old computers, monitors, printers, drives, keyboards and other computer peripherals are all considered e-waste. If your items are in working order and useable, consider donating them to an organization or non-profit that could use them. If your items are obsolete or not in working order, do not donate them to a thrift store; this is considered "dumping" and is also against the law. Non-working e-waste must be disposed of properly. Your County Household Hazardous Waste or Solid Waste Office can provide direction on the proper disposal of e-waste -- note, there may be a fee per-item or per-pound. Some retail stores such as Best Buy also accept particular e-waste materials for recycling. Earth 911 maintains a list of retailers that accept used electronics.

For a comprehensive guide to dealing with e-waste, visit the MPCA website.

Electronics do not belong in the garbage. In fact, it's against Minnesota law (Minnesota State Statute 115A.9565) to dispose of certain electronic items in the trash. Electronic waste ("e-waste") must be properly recycled or disposed of, to keep dangerous chemicals and heavy metals like mercury out of our water and air. For a comprehensive guide to dealing with e-waste, visit the MPCA website.

If your items are in working order and useable, consider donating them to an organization or non-profit that could use them. Alternately, the Recycling Association of Minnesota offers a free laptop recycling program. Visit their website to request a postage-paid laptop recycling kit.

Electronics do not belong in the garbage. In fact, it's against Minnesota law (Minnesota State Statute 115A.9565) to dispose of certain electronic items in the trash. Electronic waste ("e-waste") must be properly recycled or disposed of, to keep dangerous chemicals and heavy metals like mercury out of our water and air.

Old televisions, stereos, VCRs, DVD players, fax machines and video game consoles are all considered e-waste. If your items are in working order, consider donating them to a charity thrift store. If your items are not in working order, do not donate them; this is considered "dumping" and is also against the law. Non-working e-waste must be disposed of properly. Your county Household Hazardous Waste or Solid Waste Office can provide direction on the proper disposal of e-waste - note, there may be a fee per-item or per-pound. Some retail stores such as Best Buy also accept specific e-waste materials for recycling. Earth 911 maintains a list of retailers that accept used electronics.

For a comprehensive guide to dealing with e-waste, Visit the MPCA website.

Composting is easy, even without a yard or in an apartment with limited space. The Recycling Association of Minnesota has information about composting on their website, and sells supplies for both backyard composting and composting with worms. Prefabricated compost bins can also be purchased at most home-and-garden stores or nurseries. If you'd prefer to build your own backyard compost bin, Reduce.org has a great do-it-yourself guide.

Energy-efficient compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs)and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are gaining in popularity. They use significantly less energy than incandescent bulbs or "lamps". However, CFLs contain mercury and must be disposed of properly. You can recycle them at county Household Hazardous Waste drop-off sites, or by bringing them to the service center at any Menards or Home Depot location in Minnesota. IKEA in Bloomington also offers collection boxes for CFLs as well as halogen bulbs/lamps.

Tube fluorescent lights are typically found in commercial buildings, but many households use them as well, often in basements or garages. These bulbs also contain mercury and need to be disposed of at your area Household Hazardous Waste facility.

Incandescent lightbulbs and LEDs are not widely accepted for recycling, and should be disposed of with your regular garbage.

Mattresses and box springs contain numerous reclaimable materials, including steel, cotton, foam and wood. Recycling efforts to reclaim these materials are growing. Mattresses and box springs are accepted for recycling at specific facilities in Carlton, Chisago, Crow Wing, Isanti, Kanabec, Hennepin, Lake, Mille Lacs, Pine and St. Louis Counties. The materials are then taken to one of two mattress recycling processing facilities in the state: Goodwill Industries in Duluth, and PPL Industries in Minneapolis. The Duluth facility processed almost 60,000 items in its first five years of operation -- that's enough mattresses to stretch from Rochester to St. Paul!

When you find yourself with a spare mattress/box spring, consider reuse: create a guest room in a spare room, give it to a relative or friend, or consider listing it on a community give-away site like FreeCycle or Twin Cities FreeMarket. Note that thrift shops typically do not accept used mattresses unless they are in nearly new condition.

The best way to avoid having to dispose of paint is to not buy so much extra! Many paint manufacturers and retailers offer calculators to estimate how much paint you will need. Here are just a few:
- Valspar (a Minnesota company!)
- Benjamin Moore
- Lowe's
- True Value

Leftover paint can be taken to your county or region's Household Hazardous Waste facility. Many facilities have a re-use (or "product exchange") area where residents can leave leftover paint, cleaning chemicals and other materials, and other residents can take them for free or at minimal cost. Check with your HHW facility to see if this is offered in your area. If you have large quantities of leftover paint, you may find a buyer or taker on the Minnesota Materials Exchange website.

Aerosol spraypaint cans: if empty, these are accepted by some recycling haulers, or are otherwise safe to throw away with your regular garbage. If they are not empty, they can be dangerous if punctured or crushed in the garbage truck or landfill! So to be safe, non-empty aerosols should be taken to your Household Hazardous Waste facility. These are also great items for the HHW Re-use area or product exchange center.

Many Household Hazardous Waste facilities give the paint they collect to Amazon Environmental, a manufacturer of recycled paint. Consider supporting the market for recycled paint -- the next time you purchase paint, buy recycled. For more information on recycled paint and where to buy it, check out Amazon Environmental.

Nearly all of the major phone book companies offer the option to opt out of receiving phone books. If you are no longer interested in receiving phone books, visit the Don't Trash the Phonebook website. You will need to opt out of each phone book separately but this website links to all of the main directories and makes opting-out easy to do. If you do receive phonebooks, don't throw them away when you're done with them! They are recyclable in most curbside programs. To find recycling options in your area, also visit Don't Trash the Phonebook to see what is available.

The most frequently recycled plastics are #1 and #2 bottles. Other plastic items marked #3 through #7 - like butter tubs, single-use cups, video tapes/cassettes - can occasionally be recycled. These types of plastics are sometimes included in curbside collection. If your service provider does not currently accept these materials, some recycling centers in Minnesota do accept them via drop-off if you separate them by code. For instance, the City of Coon Rapids recycling facility accepts #1, #2, #4, #5 and #6 plastics.

Check with your local service provider to see what types of plastics they accept, and keep an eye out for special plastics collection events, such as garden plastic collections (seedling trays, pots, hanging baskets, etc.) at garden centers/nurseries each summer.

For more information on the different types of plastics and the resin identification codes, visit Wikipedia.

You may find drop-boxes in office supply stores, Target stores, and even unexpected locations like PetSmart and the Como Zoo! Mail-in return programs are also available through companies such as Xerox and Quill.

Minnesota WasteWise offers postage-paid collection boxes for ink cartridges and toner cartridges, as well as cell phones.

The Recycling Association of Minnesota also offers collection boxes for ink and toner cartridges.

This is one case where recycling not only pays off for the environment, it can actually pay off for your wallet too! There are many scrap metal yards throughout the state that accept scrap metal for recycling and will pay you market value for dropping it off. Refer to your local telephone directory for a scrap metal yard near you. Note, some facilities will only accept certain materials, so check before you make the trip!

Otherwise, many county or regional recycling facilities accept various scrap metals for recycling, and may offer special curbside collection days for such items. Check with your local facility for details.

Cleaning out your closet? The best option for shoes you consider the wrong size or style is reuse -- donate them to a local charity thrift shop. Typically if a thrift shop accepts your old shoes but later decides they can't sell them, they will be recycled. (Thrift shops accept all sorts of other materials too, of course.)

Another recycling option is to take shoes and clothing to a donation drop-box -- these kinds of drop-boxes can be found in the parking lots of churches and other businesses across the state. These drop-boxes benefit organizations like Disabled American Veterans, Courage Center, United Cerebral Palsy, local churches and other groups who do not have their own thrift stores. (Each drop-box will indicate its beneficiary). Clothing and shoes donated in these boxes are sorted, then some end up in second hand stores here in the U.S., some are sent to developing countries, and some are recycled into industrial rags or fiber. The beneficiary organizations are typically paid by the pound for these donations by the companies that collect them.

Yet another interesting way shoes can be recycled is by breaking them down into their component materials -- rubber, textiles, leather. Some businesses remanufacture these component materials into new products. For instance, Wipers Recycling in St. Paul turns old shoe and boot leather into products that absorb oil spills and chemical spills. Shoes can be dropped off at Wipers, or at the REI store in Maple Grove (ask about the "Run In and Recycle" program).

Styrofoam™ is actually a trademarked name of just one type of insulating foam. The common name of the material that makes up disposable coffee cups, coolers and packing materials is "extruded polystyrene foam" or "EPS." EPS foam is made of #6 plastic resins, which are not easily recycled. However, many companies and government agencies across the country have recognized how important it is to keep these materials out of landfills, because they do not biodegrade.

The Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers (AFPR) maintains a database of EPS foam recycling sites nationwide; they list six drop-off sites across Minnesota, in Becker, Brooklyn Park, Lester Prairie, Mound, Plymouth and Rockford. If you are not near a drop-off site, you can also mail it in to a recycler. Remember that EPS foam is 98% air and therefore extremely light -- since postage cost is partly based on weight, it might be cheaper to mail a large cardboard box of EPS foam to a recycler rather than drop it off by car or truck. The AFPR website lists mail-in sites nationwide; Minnesota has one such site, in Becker.

Remember that packing peanuts are reusable, and you can drop them off at local businesses in over two dozen communities across Minnesota for reuse. See the Packing Peanuts section for more info.

Today, most thermometers and thermostats sold in stores are digital (electronic). However, many Minnesotans may still have older non-digital thermometers and thermostats in their homes, and these items likely contain mercury.

Mercury is an extremely hazardous substance -- even a tiny amount can contaminate our air and water. It is illegal in Minnesota to throw away any object that contains mercury. This includes fluorescent lightbulbs, some types of batteries, neon signs, LCD televisions, and older thermometers and thermostats. To dispose of these items properly, they must be taken to your county or regional Household Hazardous Waste facility.

Did You Know: automobiles also contain mercury? This site explains how mercury from automotive components are reclaimed and recycled in Minnesota.

In Minnesota, yard and tree wastes have been banned from garbage since 1992. In many communities, yard waste is collected curbside and then composted. (In certain areas of Minnesota, yard waste must be bagged in paper (kraft) bags or compostable plastic bags for collection; check with your city or county if you're unsure.) Otherwise, drop-off sites exist across the state for yard waste collection -- this may include grass clippings, fallen leaves, plant trimmings, wood chips, twigs and branches.

Or, you can compost these materials yourself to create a nutritious (and free!) fertilizer for your garden or lawn. Reduce.org has a great do-it-yourself guide, or prefabricated compost bins can be purchased at most home-and-garden stores or nurseries.