As I was on my nightly walk around my neighborhood, I decided to walk a little farther to the city park.  It is a beautiful and peaceful place to walk around on a warm summer night.  There were flowers all around in full bloom, ducks swimming in the ponds while little children fed them old bread crumbs, and many other people enjoying the serenity of the summer night.  However, as I continued to walk around the park, I couldn’t help but notice that there were numerous garbage bins surrounding the area.  I am pleased to see that since the city has made these available, the park is able to stay free from most litter.  But what bothered me most was not the fact that even when waste baskets are made available, trash still found its way to the ground but that people were not given the opportunity to recycle- especially in a city that participates in the “Pay as You Throw” program.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with PAYT, it is a program where “residents are charged for the collection of municipal solid waste—ordinary household trash—based on the amount they throw away. This creates a direct economic incentive to recycle more and to generate less waste.”  When a city that implements programs (like PAYT) that are geared for residents to be more aware of recycling, shouldn’t there be more recycling opportunities in public places, such as the city park?

If you are reading this and thinking to yourself that you have seen/ not seen chances for people in your town to recycle, you could be the solution to this problem!  By starting your own green business, you will have the skills and knowledge to help your city and other local businesses- big or small- reduce waste disposal costs and recycle more often.  In fact, with environmental laws enforcing businesses to dispose of their waste properly, you could be there to guide them to dispose it properly AND cost effectively.

So the next time you decide to take an evening stroll on a warm summer night, take note on the amount of recycling opportunities there are.  If there are none, you could be the change they need and become your own boss with a work at home business at the same time!