Sustainability & Recycling Archives

glass bottle recycling landfill impact upstate ny

The Glass Bottle Problem: Why It Takes a Million Years to Disappear (And What You Can Do This Week)

A Million Years Is Not a Typo: Toss a plastic bottle in the wrong bin and it’ll be around for 450 years. That’s bad enough. But glass? Glass doesn’t decompose…

By H. Singh October 8, 2026Sustainability & Recycling, Upstate NY

Sustainability & Recycling

The 5-Cent Habit: How Upstate New Yorkers Are Turning Everyday Empties Into $50, $100, Even $200 a Year

Nobody thinks much about a single empty soda can. You finish the drink, toss the can, move on with your day. It's 5 cents. It barely registers. But here's the…

By H. Singh June 22, 2026Sustainability & Recycling

Community & Sustainability Sustainability & Recycling

What Actually Happens to Landfills When New Yorkers Skip the Bottle Return — And Why It Matters Near You

Every year, billions of deposit bottles and cans never make it back to a redemption center. They end up in curbside bins, back alleys, roadside ditches — and eventually, landfills.…

By H. Singh June 11, 2026Community & Sustainability, Sustainability & Recycling

Infinite Loop of Redemption Aluminum Can

Sustainability & Recycling

The Infinite Loop: Following an Aluminum Can from Our Counter Back to the Shelf

Pick up an empty aluminum can and look at it. To most people, it’s trash. Something to toss, forget about, and move on from. But that can has a story…

By H. Singh May 7, 2026Sustainability & Recycling