CAN IT
The national America Recycles Day Aluminum Can Challenge competition, a joint effort between the Can Manufacturers Institute and the Aluminum Association, collected nearly 123,000 pounds of aluminum and raised $88,900 for charity.
More than 15,000 employees from 65 facilities in 26 states competed. Proceeds were donated to charities, including Habitat for Humanity, United Way, American Red Cross and Make-a-Wish Foundation.
Rexam Beverage Can Americas of Fremont, Ohio, won the challenge by collecting 33,500 pounds of aluminum beverage cans in conjunction with Burns Recycling, amounting to a donation of $5,500 to the Sandusky County Habitat for Humanity.
The Rexam plant in Whitehouse, Ohio, which collected 5,350 pounds of aluminum beverage cans, took second place, while Crown Cork & Seal’s Winter Garden, Fla. can plant took third place with 3,940 pounds of aluminum.
SOMETHING’S BREWING
Spring is here, which, for many people, means it’s time to do some serious cleaning, un-cluttering their homes of well-worn household items to make room for new stuff.
Residents of Seattle and New York City got some help unburdening themselves of such items from an unlikely source.
Starbucks Coffee Co., headquartered in Seattle, kicked off its annual three-week brewing sale with a "Brewer Exchange Day," where customers could trade in their old home brewers to receive a special gift that can be used towards the purchase of a new coffee maker, espresso machine or other merchandise sold in Starbucks stores.
Starbucks hosted two exchange events—one at Westlake Park in Seattle and one at the Shops at Columbus Circle in New York City.
Recycle America Alliance (RAA), a subsidiary of Houston-based Waste Management, provided recycling services for the brewers collected at the Starbucks’ events.
Seventy-five brewers were collected at the Seattle event, and 21 brewers were collected at the New York City event.
According to Heather Browne, director of Corporate Communications for Waste Management, RAA will shred the brewers to recover the metal they contain.
During the daylong event, customers had the opportunity to participate in brewing demonstrations with Starbucks Coffee Masters, who provided tips on making coffee or espresso beverages at home.
Visitors to New York City exchange were also able to listen to John Kelley, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Best magazine (www.best
stuff.com), who offered information about the history and evolution of brewing technology and tips for replacing old household items discarded during spring cleaning.
MESSAGE CENTER
With today’s hectic lifestyles, steel appliances—whose magnetic quality make them a natural for all types of message postings—have quietly become a lynchpin in household communications. Six out of 10 families with children use their kitchen appliances as a convenient communications center, while 75 percent of single parents indicate they leave notes for their children on their appliances.
"We thought it was an interesting trend to track," Bill Heenan, president, the Steel Recycling Institute (SRI), Pittsburgh, say of the survey conducted on behalf of the steel industry by Wirthlin Worldwide.
The survey also shows that women are heavier users of "appliance communication," with nearly one-third saying they use it every day or frequently. Women older than 55 are the heaviest users, with 22 percent saying they use "appliance communications" every day.
Twenty-six percent of men aged 18 to 34 say they attach household bills to the fridge (significantly more than any other age group and more than twice as frequently compared to women in the same age group).
Explore the May 2005 Issue
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