Malibu Celebrates America Recycles Day with Polystyrene Foam Recycling, Document Shredding and Crayon Collection

MALIBU, CA -- The city of Malibu is partnering with Sustainable Surf, Access, and Crayon Collection on efforts to recycle polystyrene foam, paper documents, and used crayons as part of America Recycles Day, a national call to action to reduce, reuse and recycle waste to protect the environment.

During its Nov. 14 council meeting, the Malibu City Council will proclaim Nov. 15 to be America Recycles Day in Malibu, and present a commendation to Crayon Collection founder Sheila Morovati.

“America Recycles Day is a great way to show Malibu’s commitment to protecting the environment,” Mayor Lou La Monte said. “Free, secure document shredding can help protect against identify theft and ensure that huge amounts of paper get recycled. And collecting polystyrene foam to be recycled and re-used in eco-surfboards is a great tribute to Malibu’s surfing heritage while reducing the foam pollution that is choking marine wildlife.”

“Waste to Waves” Polystyrene Foam Collection

Malibu residents can drop off polystyrene foam packing material in the upper parking lot of Malibu City Hall (23825 Stuart Ranch Rd.), Nov. 1 to 12, Monday through Friday from 7:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The foam will be collected and recycled by the environmental non-profit organization Sustainable Surf and is used by Marko Foam Inc. to make eco-friendly surfboard blanks and other products as part of the Waste to Waves project.

Billions of pounds of polystyrene are produced in the U.S. every year, most of which is used in manufacturing polystyrene foam. When it is not properly recycled, polystyrene foam ends up in huge quantities in landfills, where it can take hundreds of years to only partially break down, and ends up in the ocean and on coastlines around the world where it damages wildlife and marine ecosystems.

Sustainable Surf’s co-founder Kevin Whilden estimates that, since it was launched in 2011, Waste to Waves has recycled over 50,000 pounds of polystyrene foam. Twenty pounds of foam can be recycled into 20 Marko Foam surfboard cores, which have 25 percent recycled content.

Free, Secure Document Shredding

Malibu residents can drop off paper documents to be securely shredded and recycled for free by Access on Saturday, Nov. 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the upper parking lot of City Hall (23825 Stuart Ranch Road). Secure paper document shredding is an effective way to prevent identity theft while recycling paper.

Crayon Collection

The city has partnered with the non-profit Crayon Collection and local restaurants for a crayon drive. As a partner of the National Head Start Association, Crayon Collection provides crayons to classrooms across the United States. Gently-used crayons can be dropped off at Malibu City Hall (23825 Stuart Ranch Rd.), Nov. 1 to 14, Monday through Friday from 7:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

America Recycles Day is just one of many ways Malibu has become a leader in environmental stewardship and education. In 2005, Malibu became one of the first cities in California to adopt a comprehensive ban on polystyrene foam food packaging and is currently working on additional restrictions to reduce impacts from other sources of polystyrene foam.

The city is striving to help the State meet its goal of diverting 75 percent of the waste from landfills by 2020. The city has policies in place to do its part including using digital files instead of paper to minimize all paper use, purchasing products made from recycled materials, using rechargeable batteries, and separating all recycling. The city encourages residents to reduce their waste, and conserve energy and natural resources.

These ongoing recycling and collection events for electronics, household hazardous waste and polystyrene have allowed Malibu to deliver on its top priority: overall waste reduction. Last year in Malibu, more than 338 tons of bottles, cans, paper, and electronic waste were recycled -- the weight of three blue whales.

-- News release from the city of Malibu. Photo via Shutterstock