The reuse-recycle movement speaks to 

 the concerns of the energy-conscious. 

 Recycling a single daily newspaper saves the 

 energy equivalent of running a 75-watt light 

 bulb for 24 hours. And it requires 90 percent 

 less energy to remake aluminum cans into 

 new ones than to meld them from virgin 

 bauxite ore. 



On the business side, the economy gets 

 a leg up from new companies that collect and 

 manufacture recyclable materials. Already, 

 existing North Carolina businesses recycle a 

 range of products, from latex paint and 

 antifreeze to plastic bags and cat litter. Others 

 encourage recycling through courtesy services, 

 such as grocery stores that accept used plastic 

 bags and gas stations that take back used motor oil. 

 On the coast, Sea Grant and the state Office of Waste 

 Reduction recently collected used commercial fishing gear — nets and crab 

 pots — for recycling. The East Carolina University Vocational Center 

 squashed the soft nets for shipment to overseas markets, where their recycled 

 fibers might reappear in sneakers, jacket liners or bicycle seats. 

 The crab pots collected — almost 20 tons — will be reused 

 by local scrap metal dealers. 



But there are drawbacks, including the hassles 

 and expenses of collecting and separating recyclables 

 and reconditioning them before they become new 

 products. Residues, such as sludge from de-inking 

 old newspapers, also sully the process. 



Perhaps most significant, however, is the lingering 

 reluctance among consumers to buy recycled products for fear 

 that they're inferior. Education can overcome this bias. Otherwise, without 

 investments in the finished products, the market for recyclables will disap- 

 pear and these items will join the other trash in landfills and incinerators. 



Before recycling can outgrow its appeal as a popular feel-good effort, 

 it has to be organized and supported on the buying end. Without this support, 

 recycling day throwbacks will increase and existing markets will wither. 



Yesterday's news, in the pages 

 of old magazines and newspapers, 

 is reincarnated as tomorrow's newsprint. 

 Newspapers are also returned 

 as molded paper egg cartons, 

 attic insulation and mulch. 



Recycling is most likely to flourish 

 where curbside service offers a 

 conservation-made-easy solution 

 to waste disposal. 



Composting 



So far, so good. I can buy products that are recycled and carry less 

 packaging. I can waste less paper. But now the EPA wants me to compost 

 my yard and food wastes, cooking them in a sort of natural backyard oven. 

 The process yields a dark brown, crumbly soil-like material with a sweet 

 or musty smell. 



The compost recipe calls for food scraps, yard clippings, leaves and dirt 

 stacked in alternating layers. Heat inside a household pile builds to 90 F or 

 more, causing oxygen molecules to break down, water molecules to gather 

 and bacteria to multiply. Millions of microbes munch on grass clippings, 

 dead leaves, fruits and vegetables. More heat is released, causing matter to 



Continued 



COASTWATCH 1 3 



