As the snow piles melt and reveal what’s been hidden for months, and as the March winds blow, litter in Durango has become quite noticeable. There are people who intentionally litter. I’m not sure how to convince them to stop. Caring residents, however, may be contributing to the area’s litter without knowing it and maybe a little education can go a long way with prevention of that form of littering.
There are lots of ways one can unintentionally litter. I’d like to point out one – the process of trashing or recycling shredded paper. If you have ever placed shredded paper directly into your trash or recycle bin and the wind was blowing when the bin was being emptied, you are likely guilty of littering.
Did you know that shredded paper is the only recyclable that Durango’s recycle program allows and even encourages you to put in a plastic bag? In addition, did you know that Durango doesn’t even accept cross-cut shredded paper as a recyclable? The fibers are too short. It’s trash.
On the Durango recycling website, it says: “Shredding paper decreases the value of the paper and reduces the number of times paper can be recycled. When not shredded, an average paper can be recycled seven to 12 times, while shredded paper can be recycled significantly fewer times.” It’s my option, if people bagged (tying off the bag) their shredded paper, whether the recyclable kind for the recycle bin or the cross-cut kind for trash, it would make a difference.
Janet Reichl
Durango
