Filth-adelphia??

Make a resolution for Earth Day 2023 to keep QV clean and green!

Have you been irked when visitors to our great city utter the term Filth-adelphia? Worse yet, from people you know who live here? Well, make a resolution around Earth Day this year to be the change that’s needed.

Mark your calendar for Saturday, April 29, and come to Carpenter’s Walk at Front and Carpenter Streets to have electronics recycled and documents shredded—and also learn about other niche recycling options.

Earth Day, which spurred the recycling movement, had a foothold here in Philadelphia 53 years ago!

Before 1970, a factory could spew black clouds of toxic smoke into the air or dump tons of toxic waste into a nearby stream.

Is it trash, or can it be recycled?

ronmental issues, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

It’s been more than 50 years since the inauguration of Earth Day, but Philadelphia still has trouble shaking its moniker, Filthadelphia. Now you don’t have to organize a protest on the Parkway, or a concert in Fairmount Park, but you can make a resolution to do one thing differently, be it one time or for the rest of the year—it’s up to you.

Earth Day resolutions

Come to QVNA’s Earth Day Event

On Saturday April 29, bring those documents and electronics to Carpenters Walk from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Front Street between Christian Street and Washington Avenue.

Consider Niche Recycling

This year, as an addition to our bi-annual shredding and e-cycling event, QVNA has invited niche recycling organizations that can address needs within your home.

And that was perfectly legal—because there was no Environmental Protection Agency, no Clean Air Act, no Clean Water Act. There were no legal or regulatory mechanisms to protect our environment.

In spring 1970, Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson created Earth Day as a way to force this issue onto the national agenda, and 20 million Americans demonstrated in U.S. cities across the country, including Philadelphia. In December 1970, Congress authorized the creation of a new federal agency to tackle envi -

Make a resolution this Earth Day with QVNA and bring documents and junk mail to be shredded or electronics with cords to be recycled. Stick around to learn how niche recycling organizations can help you with household food waste, tough-to-recycle objects, and glass bottles the other 364 days in the year!

Can’t make the event? Some other resolutions to consider around the city’s weekly pick-up:

Put your collection out on time—7 p.m. the night before, not a day earlier. (And be aware of delays due to federal holidays).

Those who collect your trash and recycling are not responsible for badly packed items—so take a moment to be the change and secure your pick-up!

Optimally, secure your trash in bags that can be tied and recyclables in a blue container. Putting them out in flimsy paper bags only invites a slight wind carry them down the street, hence, Filth-adelphia.

Lastly, “See it, Get it!” Pick up after trash day. Some trash is going to escape from the trash truck. Don’t lament the stray pieces of trash, pick them up!

Bennett Compost provides a kitchenscraps bucket and picks up once a week. You can also sign up to receive the bounty of this effort—free mulch!

TerraCycle allows you to recycle commonly trashed items that aren’t typically recyclable curbside.

Bottle Underground, based in the Bok Building, provides a system for the collection and recycling of glass bottles, so that the most recyclable material can be downcycled, upcycled, and recirculated. Come learn how it works and see about opportunities to volunteer!

Try a Local Battery Recycling Hack

The Home Depot Store accepts household batteries for recycling at no charge: alkaline, rechargeable, lithium-ion (L-Ion), and nickel cadmium (Ni-Cd). Drop them off at the Customer Service Center, 1651 S. Columbus Blvd. ■