April 22nd marks the 34th official anniversary of Earth Day, the roots of which took hold in 1962. Honest Weight would like to reaffirm its commitment to recycling and being a good tenant of Mother Earth.

We recently did our own audit of what we do here at the Coop to reduce, reuse and recycle:

a. We recycle all of the beverage bottles and cans you bring back to us.

b. Local egg farmers reuse clean egg cartons when you drop them off at the Coop.

c. We encourage our customers to bring their own cloth shopping bags by giving them a nickel for every bag used.

d. Customers who do not bring their own bags reuse clean cardboard cartons and clean plastic grocery bags. The Coop never purchases new grocery bags.

e. Plastic grocery bags that are not reusable go into plastic recycling for pick up.

f. We recycle all paper generated at the Coop: office paper, mail, registers tape, cardboard boxes, etc.

g. We use refilled toner cartridges for our printers and copier.

h. We are using recycled copy paper. And we try to always use both sides of every piece of paper.

i. We recycle packing "popcorn" and "peanuts" by saving them for Mailboxes, etc.

j. We are presently researching more environmentally friendly office supplies.

k. The produce department accepts clean, used berry baskets for reuse.

l. We use paper bulk bags for trash and recycling instead of plastic.

m. We allow customers to bring in their own containers for bulk purchases and we charge for our bags in order to encourage customers to reuse the bags that they've already purchased.

n. We carry milk in glass bottles, which require a deposit and return for reuse.

o. We offer glass plates, if you are eating in, for our hot lunch bar.

We are currently looking into a new deli case, which will allow us to serve you our wonderful deli offerings in your own containers.

p. We compost produce waste and deli waste.

q. The Coop Scoop is printed with soy-based ink on recycled paper.

What you can bring to the Coop to recycle:

• Clean plastic or paper grocery bags for reuse by our customers

• Clean egg cartons for reuse by our local egg suppliers

• Clean paper berry baskets for reuse by our produce department

• Any bottle or can that you paid a deposit on here at the Coop

• If you haven't heard or haven't seen an article in a local paper, we are collecting America Online CDs to return to AOL through an organization in California called "No More AOL CDs." Their goal is to collect 1,000,000 to return to AOL.

• We are creating a drop-off spot for used rechargable batteries, pagers, beepers and cell phones. These can be recycled at Staples and we have folks here who will take them there... or you can drop them off at Staples yourself.

What you can do while you're at the Coop to recycle and help us recycle:

• If you're having lunch, use our glass plates and then rinse and place them in the café dishwasher.

• Make sure when you dispose of your lunch containers that you place recyclables in the recycling container and trash in the trash container. We cannot at the present time recycle the "to go" plastic deli containers; these must go in the trash, unless you take them home and reuse them. Look for the new tops on our recycle bins... round holes for clean bottles and cans, and a long slit for recycling paper.

When recycling bottles, please throw away the lids and rinse before placing in the recycle bin.

What the City of Albany will recycle:

• Paper: office paper, junk mail, craft paper
• Containers: plastic #1 and #2
• Glass: green, brown, clear
• Cans, juice boxes, aseptic packages, milk cartons
• Yard waste and clippings
• Used appliances
• Batteries
• Motor oil

Resources on Recycling

New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation, Waste Reduction and Recycling Program: www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dshm/redrecy/index.htm

University of Oregon, General Recycling links: www.uoregon.edu/~recycle/Network_Link_general_text.htm

Florida Sierra Club, Plastic Recycling Information: florida.sierraclub.org/turtlecoast/Activities/RecyclSymb.htm

National Recycling Coalition: www.nrc-recycle.org/resources/resources.htm

America Recycles Day, suggested reading list (follow this link on the menu): americarecyclesday.org/main.html

Earth 911: Making Every Day Earth Day. Enter your zip code to find local recycling information: www.earth911.org

City of Albany: Recycling Specialist, Dept. of General Services, 1 Conners Blvd., Albany NY 12204-2514, (518) 357-2045

Town of Berne: Sharon Fisher, Recycling Coordinator, Bethlehem Highway Dept., 74 Elm Ave. E., Selkirk NY 12158, (518) 767-9618, sfisher@townofbethlehem.org

Town of Coeymans: Recycling Coordinator, 18 Russell Rd, Ravena NY 12143, (518) 756-6006

City of Cohoes: Recycling Coordinator, Community Development Dept., City Hall, Cohoes NY 12047, (518) 237-5242

Town of Colonie: Recycling Coordinator, Dept. of Environmental Services, 1319 New Loudon Rd., Cohoes NY 12047, (518) 783-2827

Rensselaer County: Executive Director, Eastern Rensselaer Co. Solid Waste Management Authority, 21428 Rt.22, Hoosick Falls NY 12090, (518) 686-7540

City of Troy: Recycling Coordinator, Public Works Bureau, 1 Monument Sq., Troy NY 12180, (518) 270-4559

Town of Schodack: Director of Solid Waste, 1777 Columbia Turnpike, Castleton-on-Hudson NY 12033, (518) 477-7918

Schenectady County: Recycling Coordinator, Planning Dept., 8th flr, 107 Nott St. Ter., Suite 303, Schenectady NY 12308-3170, (518) 386-2225

City of Schenectady: Recycling Coordinator, Weaver St. Transfer Station, Schenectady NY 12305, (518) 382-5144

Town of Rotterdam: Recycling Coordinator, Vinewood Ave., Schenectady NY 12306, (518) 230-3075 (pager)