Recycle

Heading to your local bank or any sort of street fair tends to have one giveaway: Free Pens! And who doesn't need writing supplies - even in this digital age? Yet a few 'free' pens can stack up to a pile of half-full, glutenous answer to the mighty pen-or-sword  debate. Which brings us to our Where Can I (Wednesday) question: Where can you recycle used pens?

Our Twitter (and offline) Friend & Health Coach Ali Shapiro has a recycling conundrum to address with one of her bathroom essentials: @greenphillyblog Any ideas on how to recycle burnt out electric toothbrushes. It says recycle appropriately but don't know where! — Ali Marie Shapiro (@AliMShapiro) May 6, 2013 Good question Ali! You can't toss those electric toothbrushes in your single-stream recycling bin. We reached out to the Philadelphia recycling powers, who addressed the problem: (Find out how/where to recycle old toothbrushes, after the jump!)

As many of you may see on our Instagram and Twitter feeds, my new pet Pouncey has quite the range of accessories since his adoption. Although he does try to reduce his carbon catprint, we were both offended when my 'Pouncey toys & treats' mail order came with a box filled of packing peanuts. So what can you do with this tiny styrofoam confetti? (Find out, after the jump!)

I recently held a small gathering at my casa and wanted to welcome my guests with local, delicious beers. The more local the beer, the less carbon to get that beer from the brewery to my apartment. Plus, the added bonus of my choice to pick up the beer via hoof would only decrease those carbon emissions. However, carrying the beer on foot for a few (but long!) short blocks caused a dilemma: I didn't want to carry glass bottles all the way home. My new criteria was a case of aluminum cans. Find out more about these beer covers and where to recycle them, after the jump!

Last year, we visited where you can recycle your old sneakers, which included local spots like Philadelphia Runner. We also addressed how to recycle your old flip flops, since we all know how many we can collect for a little post-run relaxation. So what are you to do in 2013? Good news for you runners - there's more opportunities this year to give your old kicks a new life! (Find out how and where, after the jump!)

The big game is right around the corner - The PUPPY BOWL! (Speaking of which, fun fact! Last year, 9 of the pups came straight from Pennsylvania SPCA shelters!)  (Oh, and that other game for those football fans.) With Puppybowl and Superbowl translates into dips, appetizers and parties! And with all those dips come chips! Herr's, Lays, Sun, Tortilla, and many other chips! Oh, chip heaven is on the way for me! But now the green question... Can you recycle those chip bags?

Trying to get rid of that old computer, laptop, tablet, monitor or television? A new Pennsylvania state law, effective tomorrow, prevents you from throwing out electronics curbside with the rest of your garbage. (Not like you would, anyway...) Unless your municipality (Find out the 411 on this new rule, after the jump!)

Do you ever wonder if you really need to scrape that last bit of ketchup or maple syrup out of the jar before tossing it into the recycling container? Are clean recyclables key to an efficient and successful recycling process? The answer... well, it depends. Residue left on plastic or glass containers is typically flushed out with water at some point in the process. Goo and gunk  traces on steel and aluminum cans is most likely burned away during the recycling operation as well. Essentially there's no need to waste tons of water by running the faucet repeatedly over your recyclables—even if you were to get them pristine clean, they'd probably end up getting washed again. However, you do NOT want to throw half-full food items in the recycling bin as this can lead to mold, insects, vermin and other unsanitary conditions.

Rebecca asks on our Facebook Wall: After collecting enough rubber bands to form a bouncy ball, what should you do. Here's a few ideas of where to recycle rubber bands: