Source: TerraCycle
TRENTON, N.J. , June 5, 2014 – Stadium and venue owners and managers across the nation are constantly looking for new ways to make their facilities cleaner, more efficient and more environmentally-friendly. With the help of recycling pioneer TerraCycle, facilities managers can now recycle cigarette waste instead of trashing it. Instead of the butts going to landfill, TerraCycle composts the paper and leftover tobacco and recycles the filters into plastic for industrial uses, such as pallets.
According to Keep America Beautiful, cigarette butts are the most frequently littered waste item. Sixty-five percent of cigarette waste is disposed of improperly and it accounts for 30% of litter at “transition points” where smokers must discontinue smoking before proceeding. Contrary to popular belief, cigarette butts are not biodegradable.
To address the desire to rid facility grounds of cigarette waste in an environmentally-responsible way, the Nashville Predators and Bridgestone Arena recently joined TerraCycle’s Cigarette Waste Brigade®. Chris Parker, executive vice president of the Predators, said he was proud of both the building and the community for being one of the first organizations to actively rid its venue of cigarette waste. Parker added that he hopes this movement catches on with other stadiums.
Arena staff collects discarded cigarette butts on sidewalks outside the arena and in plaza areas where smoking is permitted following Predators home games and Bridgestone Arena concerts. With postage paid by TerraCycle, boxes of collected butts are then shipped to a plant in New Jersey for recycling.
Managers looking for additional ways to reduce garbage can also use TerraCycle’s new Zero Waste Boxes. These boxes enable stadiums and venues to recycle everything from cleaning supplies, plastic cups, fluorescent light bulbs, Styrofoam® and plastic cups, plates and utensils, and chewed gum. All Zero Waste Boxes can be purchased at zerowasteboxes.terracycle.com for a variety of prices. When a box is full, it is shipped to TerraCycle for processing.
Since 2007, TerraCycle has used innovative recycling processes to repurpose otherwise landfill-bound consumer packaging waste into useful materials and products, such as recycled plastic lumber, industrial shipping pallets, and park benches. Between the Cigarette Waste Brigade and Zero Waste Boxes, there are almost no limits to what can be recycled.
About TerraCycle
TerraCycle, Inc. is an international upcycling and recycling company that takes difficult-to recycle-packaging and turns it into affordable, innovative products. Founded in 2001, TerraCycle is the world’s leader in the collection and reuse of non-recyclable post-consumer waste. TerraCycle works with more than 40 major brands in the U.S. and around the world to collect used packaging and products that would otherwise be destined for landfills. It repurposes that waste into new, innovative materials and products that are available online and through major retailers. The waste is collected through TerraCycle’s Brigade programs, which are free fundraisers that pay for every piece of waste collected and returned. For information on how to join a TerraCycle Brigade and on purchasing TerraCycle products please visit www.terracycle.com.
