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At the Palm Beach County Library
System we take the three R’s seriously -Reduce, Reuse, and
Recycle- and our patrons are an integral part of this effort.
After all, what’s circulating 6.5 million items yearly to almost
half a million cardholders if not recycling? When you borrow
instead of purchasing books, DVD’s, CD’s and magazines you’re
not only saving money, you’re also saving trees and reducing the
carbon imprint on our environment.
But our efforts go even further.
When materials are slightly worn out, damaged or the information
contained within is outdated, they are taken out of circulation
and placed with a company that lists them for sale online. Any
items that don’t sell within a specified time period are either
offered for donation to a non-profit literacy agency or are
recycled into paper pulp (to make more books!) or insulation.
When the materials do not meet the requirements for online sales
they are sent to the County Fixed Assets to be sold at the
Thrift store. This way, nothing is wasted and nothing goes to
the landfill.
At our branches, we use leftover
flyers as scrap paper. We put the newspapers, catalogs and junk
mail into the recycling bin. To help conserve energy, our
computers and copiers are programmed to automatically turn
themselves off after hours.
Our youth services staff use
discarded items (from toilet paper rolls to cardboard pieces to
fabric scraps) and imagination to help children transform many
into beautiful and exciting crafts.
This Earth Day, walk proudly into
your local library and check out a few items, confident in the
knowledge that you are part of our commitment to being green. |
