The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Earth Day Festivities took place around the globe last week. In New York City, the Earth Fair was hosted outside of Grand Central Station.

I stopped by the EPA's booth and snapped this photo:

Good to see that the EPA is supporting an end to the Cardboard Cup! Do you have your reusable mug yet?

Disposable - The Billion Cup Blood Bath

A coworker passed this video on to me.

Gets the point across.


Disposable - The Billion Cup Blood Bath from Zac Whyte on Vimeo.

Starbucks Summit on Recyclability of Cups

Last year, Starbucks CEO Howard Schults committed that Starbucks' entire stock of coffe cups will be recyclable by 2012.

Starbucks'vice president of Global Responsibility, Ben Packard, invited 30 cup, cupstock and coating manufacturers, recyclers, waste managers and university researchers to Seattle this week to discuss creating recyclable coffee cups.

Some of the research presented showed that many of the cups are already recyclable to recover paper pulp. In fact, a coffee cup can be converted into a pizza box in just three days.

Starbucks is looking to implement a pilot program in Manhattan in which specialized bins will be placed to collect cups and paper bags, which will then be sent to Staten Island’s Pratt Industries for recycling.

The key to recyclability of paper cups is their material, as some (such as Starbucks’) are made of old corrugated cardboard (OCC), and others are mixed paper.

Mixed paper is a lower grade of paper that has less value when recycled. Although many of these cups are lined with wax for temperature control, this can be removed prior to recycling.

Panelists discussed the possibility of better labeling for these cups in regards to recyclability, with one suggesting that compostable cups be labeled with a brown stripe. North America is responsible for 60 percent of the 220 billion paper cups used globally each year.

Source: Reuters, earth911.com

Contigo's No-Spill Beverageware

Contigo developed the AUTOSEAL technology, which automatically seals between sips, and has integrated the exclusive lid system into a line of travel mugs and bottles. The Contigo AUTOSEAL line of products are all FDA approved and BPA free.

"Now more than ever, people are trying to find ways to save money," Sami Elsaden, CEO of Contigo said. "By forgoing a daily stop at a coffee shop, consumers can save up to $2,000 a year as well as reduce the use of Styrofoam and cardboard cups, which is ultimately good for the environment."

UNBC Green Day

Watch a video on how the University of Northern BC is celebrating Green Day by focusing on waste reduction. The Green Day organizers have adorned the ceilings with used disposable coffee cups from waste audits showing how there is too much waste.







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Disposable coffee cups kill trees!

greenUpgrader has an article The Scourge of the Forest: Disposable Coffee Cups.

Read the article for more information on the damage caused by disposable cups and some good visuals.

Modern life is rubbish

Modern life is rubbish: litter is everywhere on Dorset streets

An article on litter in the streets with a shot of another abandoned cardboard cup...

London Coffee Cups

Fast food firms taken to task after survey of street litter

Keep Britain Tidy named the most littered brands in England as McDonald's, Greggs, KFC and Subway. While types of litter around the country varied, in London coffee cups from a mixture of brands accounted for most litter.

Pledge to Kill the Cardboard Cup and keep your city streets clean of unnecessary waste.

Paper Cups, Green Alternatives

Evil Coffee Cups

Nicely done school project demonstrating the disposable waste stream of our society--namely paper cups.

Tim Hortons at it again...

Celina's Coffee Cup Project

Another interesting project on throw-away cups.