 |
|
|
||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: August 31, 2007
Contact: Cassie Larson at (651) 633-4987
Garden Pot Recycling Program Returns
WHAT : Plastic Garden Pot Recycling
WHEN : 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the following weekend only -- Sept. 22-23
WHERE : Click here to see the list of Garden Center drop sites
SPONSORS : Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Association, AGSI Plastics, and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
MORE INFO : www.GardenMinnesota.com (including a complete list of garden center drop sites)
St. Paul , Minn. – Members of the Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Association (MNLA) are again offering the general public the opportunity to recycle their plastic garden pots! Just bring clean, plastic garden pots to the drop sites listed below, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the weekend of Sept. 23-24.
Plastic garden pots of any size should be cleaned in advance and free of wire hangers. Pots of any size and color will be accepted, however, no household plastic will be taken!
The MNLA began the environmental initiative so that green industry professionals could recycle plastic garden pots in the spring of 2006. During the 2006 pilot program, over 52.5 tons of plastic were collected by landscape professionals, garden centers, nurseries, and the general public. This overwhelming demand led the MNLA to renew the program again in 2007. During the summer collection weekend, June 23-24, over 9.2 tons of plastic was recycled and we hope to match or exceed this during the fall collection, September 23-24.
More than 80 million tons of plastic, including horticultural plastics, are generated in this country every year. Horticultural plastic pots take up substantial space in landfills; they do not readily decompose and remain intact for many years. The pots are generally not reusable by nurseries for potting due to the risk of perpetuating disease and damage sustained during travel and planting. With this program, horticultural plastic will be reused or ground, commingled and reformulated into landscape lumber, landscape edging, and other reusable products.
The MNLA has partnered with AGSI Plastics and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to make this program a reality. AGSI Plastics will take their mobile granulator to each of the sites where they will grind the pots into small chips that are easily transportable to the end market.
MNLA has also partnered with several local green industry suppliers to make this program possible. Since May 2007, green industry professionals, including garden centers and landscape companies throughout Minnesota , have returned 450,000 pounds of clean plastic garden pots to wholesale drop sites throughout the Twin Cities metro area.
“We continue to be very pleased at the response from MNLA member companies to recycle their plastic pots,” said MNLA President Tim Power. “Every day our industry plants trees and flowers for environmental improvement. We're building on this positive environmental track record through this recycling program. We hope consumers will take advantage of this opportunity as well.”
For more information, visit www.GardenMinnesota.com.
To find a garden center or landscape professional in your area, visit Minnesota's on-line gardening resource, GardenMinnesota.com.
The Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Association is the state's largest green industry trade association with more than 1,500 member businesses including garden centers; landscape contractors and designers; tree and flower growers; irrigation contractors; and lawn, tree, and garden services.
This web site is provided as a service to consumers by members of the Minnesota Nursery and Landscape Association ( MNLA)