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It is a typical scene at the little league ball field – beautiful surroundings, green grass, the chatter of excited kids, the thunk of a bat…and crowd cheers! Yet, you also often see soda cans and plastic bottles strewn along the sidelines. As our population grows, Marylanders are becoming less and less tolerant of such litter.
The Maryland Department of Environment (MDE), the Charles County Department of Public Facilities, the Maryland Beverage Association, and the Charles County Youth League recently kicked off “Go Team Recycle!,” an exciting new partnership for the 2007 baseball season designed to raise awareness about recycling and boost recycling rates at youth sports events.
“This is a great opportunity to promote recycling and educate children and their families on the importance of recycling outside of the home,” said Lowry Phelps, recycling and litter control superintendent for Charles County government. “Recycling is important in our homes and offices, and we want to spread that message through this pilot program to recreational areas as well.”
The Maryland Beverage Association, which represents local soft drink bottling companies in Maryland, purchased and donated 10 new recycling containers to the Charles County Department of Public Facilities. The containers are located throughout Laurel Springs Park in LaPlata and at the Capital Clubhouse in Waldorf. “This partnership allows the local beverage industry to further demonstrate our commitment to the environment,” said Ellen Valentino, executive vice president of the Maryland Beverage Association. “The beverage industry’s packages are among the most recycled consumer packaging in the nation. Recycling is a critical part of our business as we strive to reduce our environmental footprint through responsible business practices each and every day.”
Coordinated by MDE, the pilot project is the first of its kind in the area. MDE has been working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Recycling Coalition, the Beverage Packaging Environmental Council, and other states on a national effort to develop ways to raise awareness of the benefits of recycling beverage containers. MDE is also working closely with EPA Region 3 to increase recycling through the federal Resource Conservation Challenge, which has a goal to increase recycling nationwide to 35 percent by 2008. This project will provide information about the feasibility and logistics of implementing recycling programs away from home at youth sporting events.
“Recycling makes good sense, saves energy, conserves natural resources, and reduces the overall volume of waste. We look forward to seeing the results of this project and hope to share the benefits of this program and lessons learned with other recycling coordinators statewide and with our colleagues nationally” said Horacio Tablada, director of MDE’s Waste Management The pilot program is expected to continue into October at the Park and indefinitely at the Capital Clubhouse.
Click here for more information about recycling in Maryland.
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