be melted and reformed over and 

 over again, Appelget says. 



But only 1 percent of the plastic 

 produced in the United States is 

 recycled. Appelget is trying to in- 

 crease those figures. 



His company is processing 5,000 

 pounds of plastic a day or enough 

 plastic per week to fill a one-acre 

 landfill 8 feet deep. 



But for Appelget's company and 

 others like it to succeed, they need 

 plenty of used material. And that 

 means folks need to separate out 

 their recyclable refuse. 



Some local governments, such 

 as Charlotte, Durham and Raleigh, 

 have begun recycling programs. 



In Charlotte, residents are pro- 

 vided with a special 10-gallon 

 "curb it" container in which to 

 place plastic soft drink bottles, 

 glass and aluminum beverage cans. 

 Newspapers are placed in paper 

 bags on top of the containers. 



According to the Center for 

 Plastic Recycling Research, results 

 from the pilot project showed that 

 at least 74 percent of the eligible 

 households in Charlotte were 

 recycling regularly. 



Other city and county govern- 

 ments in North Carolina and nation- 

 wide are following suit. Presently, at 

 least 600 U.S. municipalities pick 

 up recyclable materials at the curb. 

 Others have designated drop-off bins. 



If your town doesn't have a recy- 

 cling program, you can still reduce 

 your refuse by taking some items to 

 the nearest buy-back center. Most 

 centers accept glass, aluminum, tin 

 cans and newspapers. 



Some also accept magazines, 

 aluminum foil and scrap, cor- 

 rugated cardboard, paper bags, 

 phone books, wood and plastic 

 containers. Check with your buy- 

 back center to see how you can 

 make a difference. 



TAKE 

 IT 



FROM 



THE 



KIDS 



By Nancy Davis 



When the camera panned on a 

 remote beach piled high with trash, 

 the audience stared stone-faced. 



When they watched a baby sea 

 lion struggle to free itself from a 

 fishing net, they raised their 

 eyebrows. 



When the scene flashed to a 

 seabird strangled in a plastic six- 

 pack yoke, they winced. 



But a sea turtle with a plastic bag 

 protruding from its mouth brought 

 gasps and looks of disgust from the 

 audience. 



"Ooh." "Gross." "Yuck." 



Those were the reactions from a 

 classroom full of sixth-graders— 

 some of the very people who one 

 day will be entrusted with the fate 

 of our seas. 



They were also some of the folks 

 Sea Grant and other state agencies 

 had in mind when we began spon- 

 soring a statewide beach cleanup 

 three years ago. 



Sure, we wanted to rid the coast 

 of trash, says Sea Grant marine 

 education specialist Lundie Spence, 

 the Big Sweep coordinator. But we 

 also wanted to raise awareness of 

 the litter problem on our beaches 



and to change people's bad habits. 



We figured if we educated kids 

 about the problem, they'd grow up 

 to be more responsible citizens. 



"It's the standard cliche that the 

 students of today will become the 

 voters of tomorrow. But that state- 

 ment carries a lot of weight," 

 Spence says. 



"We adults think that kids aren't 

 concerned about the environment," 

 Spence says. "But ask a kid what 

 he thinks about littering. You'll find 

 they have an awareness of the 

 problem." 



Spence was right. Coastwatch 

 recently visited a sixth-grade 

 science class in Wake County. And 

 if their comments are any indica- 

 tion, these kids will take good care 

 of the coast. 



"I went to the beach last weekend, 

 and I was looking for shells. But I 

 found a lot of glass and trash, too," 

 Aaron says. 



"Our society is so lazy," Leslie 

 says. "If there's a trash can on the 

 beach next to them, they'll still toss 

 their trash right on the ground." 



"We're a society of convenience," 

 Beth says. 



"People think that leaving their 

 trash on the beach doesn't matter," 

 Anna says. "It saves them time. But 

 it all builds up." 



"Yeah," says Andrew. "People 

 don't realize that the water can 

 come up and carry all the waste 

 out to sea." 



Andy Wood, education curator at 

 the North Carolina Aquarium at 

 Fort Fisher, believes the best age to 

 teach kids about their environment 

 is the fifth grade. But even three- 

 year-olds aren't too young to learn, 

 he says. 



"They can develop a sense of 

 responsibility," he says. "It's impor- 

 tant to approach kids early so they 



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