O.K., by now most of us do some sort of recycling at home -- trash, that is. We separate the waste from the paper and the yard clippings each week and leave it out on the street. But what is big business doing?
We found a company in Ventura County that is taking GOING GREEN to new heights. Not only are employees required to recycle their own trash, but much of what they sell and throw out in turn is put back into the company for making new product. We won't give away the company's name until the story runs Friday, but apparently it is a pretty popular place to work. My producer, Kimber Liponi, reports that there are some 900 applications for each job opening.
That got me wondering what other companies are doing to recycle. Maybe the place to start is in ones own backyard. So today I quizzed the cleaning staff looking for answers to what happens to all that trash we generate in the weather office. The answer: Without separation, everything simply ends up in the same bag -- the same dumpster somewhere on the KNBC lot.
It was time for action. The cleaning crew informed me that there are recycle bins available, but we had never asked. Fifteen minutes later, two bright recycling bins arrived in the KNBC weather office. Yes, we go though a ton of paper -- the normal stuff you print plus more forecast information and maps than you can imagine. We often don't get much of a break, so eating is often done on the run. All those cans, plastic bottles and empty coffee cups, etc.: Until today, they all used to simply go in the trash. Now we have to think a moment before tossing out, but within minutes of those beautiful new trash bins, I figured it all out and with a great sense of pride dumped my first set of weather forecast maps in one bin and the empty Red Bull in the other.
I had a made a difference, however small. So what do you do? We want to hear about it.
