aNewDomain — If you want to protect the environment, then you must make sure that recyclable products do not end up in landfills.

These days almost everything is recyclable, but you need to plan ahead to ensure that glass, plastic, paper and metal items are disposed of properly. In advance of Earth Day 2017, here are a few tips for making sure that you recycle at home, work and school. Have fun.

First, create your own recycling station.

 In order to recycle effectively, you should make it easy for everyone by having sorting stations available. A sorting station will have containers available to hold different types of products. Hopefully your child’s school already has a program in place, but if not help start one. Some of the types of materials that you can recycle include:

• Plastic – water or food containers
• Glass – food containers
• Paper – newspaper, writing paper, paper plates
• Metal – aluminum foil or food cans
• Electronics – old televisions and computers
• Appliances – contain metal and plastic
• Ink cartridges – plastic and other materials
• Furniture – contains fabric, wood and metal • Textiles – fibers are used in new products

Second, find out where the real recycling stations are.

Your city will have recycling centers available where you can bring items that are sorted, cleaned and shipped to other locations for reuse in new products.

Each recycling center has its own regulations about what it will accept, so make sure to understand these policies before loading your vehicle with bags of items. You might need to clean or sort products in a particular way in order for the recycling center to accept your bags of recyclable trash.

Also, find out which local businesses will accept recycling.

Many local businesses will accept certain products for recycling. A nearby store might have a container to hold old plastic shopping bags that are recycled into new products. A cellphone store will accept your old cell phones to recycle the devices for individuals who need a cellphone in an emergency. An electronics store will accept used batteries so that the dangerous chemicals from the items will not leach into the soil, and the same store might offer you a discount on a new computer when you bring in an old computer. Even Wireless providers are coming on board with their own initiatives for mobile device recycling.

Finally, get up to speed on how to recycle ink cartridges, paint, batteries and other hazardous materials you can’t just 86.

When you are cleaning a home or business, never put hazardous items into the trash. Some of these items can include:

• Cleaning supplies
•  Paint
•  Oil
•  Batteries
• Ink cartridges
• Adhesives

It is possible for companies to refill ink cartridges or to break apart the items to reuse the different materials in other products. Alternatively, many hazardous products require specialized care to protect the earth’s air, water and soil from additional chemical contamination.

Last but not least, do the world a good turn and spread the word.

Lots of people don’t know how to recycle items in their communities, but if you do know how, take some time out to teach people. Once they understand how important and easy recycling is, they’re liable to make more of an effort.

For aNewDomain, I’m Brian Matthew.

Cover image: Sweden.se, All Rights Reserved.