The document provides practical steps for going green in Johnson County, Kansas, emphasizing the principles of reducing, reusing, and recycling. It highlights ways to minimize waste, such as reducing purchases, opting for reusable items, and recycling specific materials responsibly. The document also includes local recycling resources and links to more information for residents looking to adopt more sustainable practices.

1. Simple Steps for Going Green in JoCo KS

2. Simple Steps for Going Green in JoCo KS Reduce Reuse Recycle It’s not that hard, it’s just a new habit Little things can make a big difference

3. Reduce The easiest way to start going green is to reduce the amount of stuff we purchase, use and waste Americans consume the most resources per person in the world Recycling is great but it does cost money

4. Reduce Packaging Reduce the amount of individually packaged snacks and drinks you purchase. Reduce the amount of plastic bottles you purchase. Plastic Bags Do you bring your own reusable bags to the market? When at the store do you put your bananas in a plastic produce bag? What do you do with those bags when you get home?

5. Reduce The Clean Air Council estimates that 2.5 million plastic bottles are thrown away in America EVERY HOUR. Earth911 reports that 60 million plastic bottles end up in landfills every day, worldwide.

6. Reduce Paper consumption Paper towels and napkins Paper cups Office and craft paper Gift wrap Opt out of junk mail http://www.dmachoice.org http://www.optoutprescreen.com to opt out of credit card offers

7. Reduce CHALLENGE: Reduce the amount of garbage your family produces each week. Plastic Paper Food

8. Reuse Buy reusable not disposable Buy juice in bulk and eliminate juice boxes. Buy a high-quality water filter for your tap water and eliminate bottled water. Sigg ™ Stainless Steel Bottles Klean Kanteen ®

9. Reuse Reduce the amount of plastic wrap for leftovers with reusable glass containers. Snapware ® Glasslock Pyrex ® Storage

10. Reuse Reduce the amount of zipper plastic baggies with reusable snack packs. How many of these does your family go through in a week? LunchSkins

11. Reuse Reduce the amount of paper waste in your kitchen by using reusable items. Use cloth towels and napkins. Use glass for drinking. How many of these does your family use?

12. Reuse Reuse the backs of school papers instead of throwing them away. Cut papers into quarters and use for notes. Then you can recycle them when they are all used up. Let younger kids use the backs for coloring.

13. Reuse Replace paper gift wrap and bags with reusable cloth bags especially for holidays. We found great ones on Etsy.com

14. Reuse When possible do not buy new. When you are done with something donate it or sell it. Furniture, clothing, sporting goods Garage sales, consignment sales, thrift stores, classifieds, Craigslist, Ebay Try to reuse or re-purpose items. Before tossing something into the trash, think of how it can be reused.

15. Recycle Paper Plastic Aluminum and Steel/Tin Glass Other (electronics, ink cartridges, batteries, hazardous waste)

16. Recycle Curbside Recycling in JoCo Paper Office paper Newspaper Phone books Junk mail Magazines Cardboard Corrugated Chip board Paper board (cereal boxes) No food soiled cardboard, tissues, wax coated paper

17. Recycle Curbside Recycling in JoCo Plastic No. 1 – No. 7 Aluminum and Steel/Tin Cans No glass, Styrofoam, plastic bags

18. Recycle Drop Off Recycling in JoCo Ripple Glass – Glass only in the purple bins all over town. Locations list at http://rippleglasskc.com/where-to-recycle.php City Recycling Centers 11921 Hardy, Overland Park Kansas Ave & Poplar St, Downtown Olathe 13600 S. Alden St, East Olathe Parker & Sante Fe, West Olathe Plastic Bags Some stores have bins to collect used bags (ex. Wal-Mart)

19. Recycle Household Hazardous Waste Call for appointment 913-715-6900 Monthly drop off dates 2 nd Saturday for Olathe residents at 1420 S. Robinson Dr or call 913-971-9311 for appointment. Olathe also has a product reuse program. Electronics Donate (ex. Goodwill) Drop off at certain retail locations (ex. Best Buy) Drop off at certain small businesses Olathe residents 913-971-9311 Community recycling days

20. Recycling City Resources Gardner http://www.gardnerkansas.gov/recycling/ Lenexa http://www.ci.lenexa.ks.us/Planning/TrashRecycling.html Olathe http://www.olatheks.org/OMS/Recycling/Curbside Overland Park http://www.opkansas.org/Resident-Resources/Drop-Off-Recycling-Center Prairie Village http://www.pvkansas.com/index.aspx?page=106 Roeland Park http://www.roelandpark.net/CityServices/Trash/RemindertoResidents.html

21. Recycling Resources Johnson County Environmental Department http://jced.jocogov.org Ripple Glass http://rippleglasskc.com/ Recycle Spot http://www.recyclespot.org Recycling Centers http://www.recyclingcenters.org Terracycle http://terracycle.net/ (great for juice pouches and other food packaging)

22. Going Green Resources Blue Planet Green Living http://www. blueplanetgreenliving .com/ Bridging the Gap http://www.bridgingthegap.org Earth 911 http://earth911.com Healthy Child Healthy World http://www.healthychildhealthyworld.org/ Living Green with the King http:// livinggreenwiththeking .com/ Mambo Sprouts http://www.mambosprouts.com/ Mindful Mama Blog http://mindfulmomma.typepad.com/mindful_momma/ Mother Earth News http://www.motherearthnews.com/ Non-Toxic Kids Blog http://www.non-toxickids.net/ The Daily Green http://www.thedailygreen.com/ The Smart Mama Blog http://www.thesmartmama.com/ The Surplus Exchange http://www.surplusexchange.org