Yes, you read that correctly: Charleston County Recycling is now accepting all plastics for curbside pickup! This means you can start throwing plastics labeled #3, #4, #5, #6, and #7 into your blue bin along with the #1 and #2 plastics. They will accept all plastics except plastic wrap, plastic bags, and Styrofoam (all things [...]

If you’re struggling to find green ways to keep your property looking nice, or just looking for new ideas to expand your eco-landscaping repertoire, the Tri-County Carolina Yard Experience might be the perfect event for you (March 13, 9-2pm, Charleston Exchange Park) Tri-County Carolina Yard Experience is based on the Carolina Yards & Neighborhoods program, [...]

Back in October we blogged about Brian Sheehan, Charleston’s new sustainability director. The community was, and still is, excited to have someone focused on greening up our fair city. Well, Brian and his team have been hard at work, and are about to unleash the Charleston Business Challenge! The Green Business Challenge will help local [...]

On Monday, Brian Sheehan began work as Charleston’s first ever director of sustainability – the only new city position funded this year. Brian has tons of eco-experience, and most recently worked on sustainability initiatives for the city of Portland, Oregon (they are doing awesome things!) SC Biz Magazine says, The sustainability director will create long- [...]

It’s that magical time of year again when 3,800 pages worth of unneeded phone books arrive, uninvited, on my front porch. Out with the old, in with the new…but with a twist: The old phone books are 100% recyclable.  You can just throw them right into your blue curbside bins, and Charleston County Recycling will [...]

Recycling only takes a little knowledge, a little time, and a little motivation. If you see a neighbor throwing away materials that can be recycled, don’t be afraid to help them out. They may be missing the recyclable materials list, confused about their recycling pickup day, or unaware how important this basic civic activity really [...]

The Sustainability Institute is sponsoring Charleston Water Week to increase awareness around the conservation of our most precious resource – H2O. We want to help the cause, so each day this week we are featuring a different water-related nonprofit serving our local community. Charleston Waterkeeper was founded in September 2008 to preserve and protect the [...]

Wow, Earth Day 2009 is fast approaching (April 22 – also our 2nd anniversary!), and with it comes many chances to celebrate with our green community. Here’s a quick set of links to help make your Earth Day plans: April 18 – Charleston County Earth Day Festival April 18 – Green Village Tour Run April [...]

Recycling Fail takes a look at ways people botch this basic green action. It’s funny…’cause it’s true. Here’s a shot where it looks like someone had some semi-useful items (wood scraps and a used window?), so they left them for “someone else to pick-up.” I bet they got their wish. I like how the glass [...]

Both major green events here in Charleston have announced their dates and other details. So mark those calenders, bust out your walking shoes, and prepare to get your green-on. Charleston County Earth Day Festival This year’s event will be back in Park Circle on April 18, and should top the 7,500 attendees and over 70 [...]

I like to keep things positive around here, but sometimes it helps to point out mistakes rather than successes – we learn from our mistakes too, right? One of our first columns was Weekly Trashed, which was a photographic look at poor trash disposal activity. On a recent trip to a Mount Pleasant recycling drop [...]

Eating locally produced food is a key ingredient to a sustainable future. The authors of Plenty learned that while eating only food from local farmers can be rewarding and delicious, it was also exstremely difficult in our world of Magellean-like meals.  Lowcountry Local First advocates for all local businesses, and knows that true sustainabilty requires all [...]

For the past five years, Mount Pleasant has opened their maintenance facility to residents for used motor oil and oyster shell recycling. I know a lot of DIY oil changers, and there’s an oyster roast around every corner, so it’s nice to know there is a recycling option for both activities. The site is located [...]

While we’re trying to use fewer nasty chemicals around the house, we still end up with leftover paint, gas, cleaners, antifreeze, and other sludge that needs to be disposed of properly…which can sometimes be challenging. 92% of all poison exposure cases occur in our homes, 87% of which are accidental (makes you wonder about that [...]

We all know how fast the area is growing, and the perpetual construction of I-26 between Summerville and Charleston is certainly a symptom. Even though traffic continues to grow, adding lanes will not solve this problem alone. Using public transportation, working remotely, moving near your office, and carpooling are all things you can do to [...]

It’s that time of year again – new phone books are arriving on porches and driveways throughout the Lowcountry. This means updated information, but also tons of excess waste. Please remember that Charleston County Recycling accepts old phone books for reclamation, and you can throw them right into your blue curbside bin with other paper [...]

It’s back to school time! Well, for us, this is our first jump into the wonders of public school (Kindergarten, here we come!) Leading up to the big day, one question has been popular in the conversations: Will he ride the bus? We have lived in our neighborhood for 8 years, and I have never [...]

I just got word via my favorite local news site, The Digitel, that Charleston County Recycling now has the ability to collect and recycle compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). This is great news, as you probably know that CFLs are full of nasty stuff like mercury. Also, since a lot of Charleston’s trash is incinerated [...]

Sorry for the late notice, but I just received word about a Regional Forum this Saturday that will help shape the future of the Charleston-area (thanks Josh!). Our Vision, Our Plan will feature discussions covering community growth, natural resources, quality of life, and more. From the website: Launched in 2008 by the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of [...]

As you might imagine, we get asked a lot of questions about how to go green here in Charleston. Out of all of those questions, there is one that gets asked more often than all the others: How do I get a blue recycling bin? It’s extremely easy to get a free blue recycling bin [...]