6 Things You Didn’t Know You Can Recycle
Many of us routinely recycle plastic, paper, glass, and metals. However, there are many other things you probably didn’t know could be turned in for cash or a tax deduction. Plus, you’ll feel good about helping to save the planet.
Here is a list of six items you can recycle or donate, for money or just because it’s the right thing to do.
#1. Trash
A company called TerraCycle will pay for your trash. This program works best for schools, small businesses, and nonprofits that collect a lot of trash. The company will donate money to your cause for every piece of trash you send the organization. According to its website, the company will take everything from empty Scotch tape rolls to energy bar wrappers.
#2. Wine Corks
Recycling wine corks won’t make you rich, but it could definitely pay for a free bottle of wine. There are a couple of places to make money on wine corks.
The first source is eBay. Some very peculiar products for sale are on eBay, including corks. Craft makers, manufacturers, and other businesses use old corks and are willing to pay for them. The price isn’t much, usually around five cents per cork.
Most prefer to purchase corks in bulk, meaning they want a box of several hundred.
The second option is to send them to Yemm & Hart Green Materials. This eco-friendly manufacturer is the leading recycler of corks, and it pays for them. Yemm & Hart requires a minimum of 10 pounds of corks and they must be pure, not synthetic or plastic. The rate of pay is determined by the current market value of cork.
#3. Gift Cards
Many of us receive gift cards on birthday or holidays and never get around to using them. If you have a few of those lying in a drawer, you might consider trading them. Cardpool will take your unused gift cards and send you a check for them. While the amount is less than the face value of the card, it’s more than it’s getting sitting in a drawer.
Gift cards, gas cards, grocery store savings cards, even student ID cards, and driver’s licenses all are made from PVC, a recyclable plastic. If you have used or expired cards, you can at least bundle them up and recycle them. Earthworks Systems is one company that will find a use for them.
#4. Cooking Oil
Many recycling centers, biodiesel firms, and small business people pay for used cooking oil. And if you run a restaurant or a school cafeteria, you may just have a lot of it to sell.
Scan Craigslist in your area for local purchasers.
Winter is usually the prime time for getting cash for oil because it can be used in home heating systems. Several cities in the U.K. will trade used cooking oil for bus passes, movie tickets, and cash. U.S. cities are beginning to do this as well, but it is a fairly new practice and you will have to find places locally via the newspaper or the internet.
Prices range from 33 cents to 66 cents per gallon. It isn’t much money, but it is a great way to get rid of that oil.
#5. Tennis Balls
An astonishing 300 million tennis balls are manufactured every year. They are made with a rubber that is not biodegradable. That creates more than 20,000 metric tons of rubber waste a year.
A small company called Rebounces has come up with a solution. It has created a machine that “re-bounces” or renews old tennis balls and will pay the shipping for donated balls.
It has specific requirements for the tennis balls it will take. They can’t be missing felt or have been wet, for instance. They also require a large amount, roughly 100-250 balls, before they will take them.
Although this probably isn’t an option for the regular individual, if you belong to a tennis club or your kids are on a tennis team, you might consider it. Keeping that much rubber out of the landfill is a winning proposition.
#6. Human Hair
There is a lucrative market for human hair. Rates for unbleached natural hair can range from $200 to well over $1,500 depending on the shade, length, and condition.
Hair extension companies, wig makers, and even heirloom hair weavers pay for hair. Sites such as buyandsellhair.com and hairsellon.com are just a couple of the sites that will purchase your hair.
You can even find buyers of hair on eBay and Craigslist. Before you buzz off your locks, do your research and make certain you are dealing with a reputable business. There are lots of fraudulent buyers out there.
If you don’t need the cash but would like to help a child, you can donate your hair to Locks for Love. This reputable charity makes wigs for children who’ve lost their hair due to illness.
Call for Action:
Ehfaaz is a waste renewable services company whose mission is to provide UAE with a viable economical, innovative, and sustainable alternative to landfilling or incineration, and to continuously provide top quality recycled materials to consumers while permeating the positive feeling of using recycled materials. We can take most of the materials that you think are a waste and un-recyclable and recycle them.
