NEWSLETTER ALLOWS FIRMS TO RECYCLE AMONG SELVES

Businesses can recycle their waste materials to other companies that need

them, with the help of a quarterly Sonoma County newsletter that lists

materials available and wanted.

Material categories include construction, containers, durable goods,

electronics, glass, metal, organics, paint/wax, paper, plastic, rubber,

textiles and wood.

Examples of recent exchanges:

55-gallon metal drums, which once contained food products, are being

manufactured into animal troughs by a Petaluma rancher.

Plastic bags which once contained evaporated fruit are being used by

schools and households to line compost, recycling and trash bins.

Polystyrene sheets are being used by a Santa Rosa landscaper as insulation

for a greenhouse. Wooden pallets are used in the greenhouse as plant tables.

Many of the items are free or at low cost. All pricing and transportation

is negotiated between parties.

The newsletter is distributed to more than 1,000 people in the county,

according to the Sonoma County Waste Management Agency, which sponsors the

program.

For information, call 527-3375.

--Mary Fricker