Party time of the year opens doors to can recycling

As most families know, this is a very busy time of the year. With Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s, most residents are having a lot of company with dinners and parties going on.

With so many activities, in addition to day-to-day events, there will be a lot of drinking soft drinks and yes, even beer consumed. Some foods purchased at grocery stores, as well as dog and cat food, are packaged in aluminum cans which can easily be recycled to earn cash.

Not all cans are aluminum, so be sure what you are saving for recycling. A refrigerator magnet will not stick to an aluminum can, so check to be sure.

It is always a good idea to rinse the cans so there will be no bugs or insects attracted to the cans.

When having a special gathering, another good idea is to provide a large receptacle with a plastic bag inside, then all that has to be done is when the bag is full of cans, lift the bag out and tie the top securely.

Several of the local schools hold special can collection days when students have been saving cans for the special day. Those collections are usually very successful and mean a nice amount of cash is made available. Many years ago, the Humane Society of Harrison County started saving the cans to keep them out of the landfill and to make money for certain projects. The Humane Society is still collecting aluminum cans at their man office, the Pet Place, 1901 Jefferson Ave., Marshall, just behind Walmart.

There is a large fenced area with a large trailer available to load cans for transport to the local recycle center. When someone has a load of cans to donate to the Humane Society, they just drive to the gate where the trailer is available and either put the bag or bags of cans at the gate or the bags can be tossed over the fence and they will be placed in the trailer by a volunteer.

You may wonder what the Humane Society does with money earned from recycling the cans. Humane societies everywhere need all the money they can get, of course. It is expensive to take care of live animals. They need food, perhaps veterinary care, medicines, as well as items that are sent home with the dogs or cats when they are adopted from the Pet Place. Dogs are sent home with a collar, identification tag, leash and other items essential to their care. Cats go home with a collar, ID tag, a carrier and other items.

But, most important of all, cats and dogs that are old enough to be spayed or neutered also have the surgery before they leave to go to their new, forever home.

So, what can you do now to keep cans out of the landfill and make money for a very worthwhile organization? By recycling aluminum cans, a few big bags full, or just a little bag. All can count, you know. If you drink canned juice or sodas or have dogs or cats that you feed, check to see if the cans are aluminum and start saving right now. You’ll be amazed at how quickly your collection will grow.