A 'Message in a Bottle' for Earth Day

Bottled water
Bottled water sits on the shelf.
Photo by Chris Hondros/Newsmakers

A new recycling program in St. Cloud will cut down on garbage, put people to work and provide building materials, too. The so-called "Message in a Bottle" program starts in St. Cloud on this Earth Day.

Some convenience stores now have containers for customers to recycle their used beverage cans and bottles.

The bins resemble a giant soda bottle. Convenience stores like the program because it helps them reduce their garbage.

Think outside the bottle
Americans chug more than 30 billion single-serving bottles of water a year.
Nikki Tundel

A store manager in Waite Park says plastic bottles probably make up the largest portion of the trash at her store.

Meanwhile, Doug Lien, with Tri-County Waste Disposal, says it is offering stores a second opportunity to recycle.

"Businesses will be able to arrange to have shrink wrap picked up and recycled into plastic lumber. And that currently hasn't been available for the smaller retailers and smaller businesses," Lien said.

Lien says the central Minnesota program is the second of its kind in the state. A similar program started in Hutchinson about a year ago.

Create a More Connected Minnesota

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