Austin, TX Rotary Club Keeps Styrofoam Out of Landfills

SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): The Rotary Club of Austin-Southwest organizes a monthly Styrofoam cleaning event aimed at reducing waste and reusing the material. Hosted the first Saturday of every month, the club collects, cleans and dries Styrofoam to take to the city of Austin’s Recycle & Reuse Drop-off Center on behalf of the community. “If you look around, there’s a lot of need. Our primary objective is giving to the community because we believe there are things with bigger purpose than just us,” said Holly De Leon, director of the club’s board. “Environmental issues should be on everyone’s radar,” she said.

The Styrofoam Project supports the club’s commitment to environmental protection. Beth Long, the club’s vice president, came up with the idea and began the project in October. Since then, the group has collected more than 500 pounds of Styrofoam. “That’s a lot, considering how light Styrofoam actually is,” Long said.

The Styrofoam Project aims to make the disposal of Styrofoam easier for community members. Since Styrofoam takes 500 years to decompose in landfills and cannot be recycled like cardboard or paper, it is not advisable to throw it in the trash. “The only way you can effectively get rid of Styrofoam is taking it to the reuse center.” De Leon said.

Courtesy: www.wasteadvantage.com