So on today's post I'm going to give a quick lesson on can collection and my plans surrounding it. I promise you will be the belle of the ball when you impress your friends with all of your knowledge of container recycling. Of course, you could also read a good article about the subject of container-deposit legislation:
So, how exactly does can collection work?
- Collect cans
- ?????
- Profit!
- First, you collect your cans (whether by simply saving your empties or dumpster-diving)
- Once you have a sizable amount, you bring them to a reverse vending machine (which is exactly what is sounds like: the machine gives you the money and you give it a can). The picture above is of a RVM (via wikipedia, copyright cleared).
- I collect my earnings and take down statistics.
If you're curious, yes you can also collect glass, although that pays out at a bulk rate (roughly 10 cents a pound), and may be harder to carry around (glass is pretty heavy when you think about it).
I also may have a competitive advantage in collecting around where I live, which is a quasi-gated apartment building exclusive to graduate students. My one concern is that I may face strong competition from the career can collectors- mostly Mexican immigrants who collect cans to supplement their income. I hope to learn more about these people as I get into the whole process (not a whole lot is known about thier own organization), and ultimately my goal is to write about them.
In the meantime, I hope everyone's summer is going well! Talk to you all soon,
-Charles
