The RayovACTION road trip for battery recycling was a success!

But the fight is not over yet. Rayovac still tells consumers in the U.S. that batteries should be thrown in the trash, while at the same time advising consumers in other countries to recycle them. Learn more about TCE's next steps for expanding battery recycling in the U.S. here>>

The final public input meeting about SH 45SW might have passed, but the debate over its proposed construction is only just heating up. Earlier this week, Austin City Manager Marc Ott sent a letter to TxDOT, asking the department to revise its Environmental Impact Statement of the road, taking into consideration three pending environmental studies that are critical of the highway's effect. He also asked for an extension of the public comment period, which is set to expire today. 

Austin's Resource Recovery Center now accepts electronics for recycling!Through a recycling processing contract with the Dallas-based company, ECS Refining, they now accepts the following:  

• Televisions, including cathode ray tubes
• Computers, including cathode ray tube monitors
• Computer equipment, including keyboards and mice
• Mobile devices, including cell phones, smartphones, PDAs and pagers
• Printers, scanners and copiers
• Fax machines
• Video game consoles
• Cameras

Electronics dropped off at the center will be shredded, allowing their plastic components to be reused in automotive products and garden furniture. Metals, such as gold, silver, and copper, will also be extracted and reused to make jewelry and new electronic devices. Hours for the Resource Recovery Center (located at 3810 Todd Lane) are8am – 5pm Monday – Friday. More info>>

Styrene, the chemical found in styrofoam and other plastics, has officially been linked to cancer. The National Research Council, a policy body associated with the Institute of Medicine and the National Academy of Science, upheld a finding made three years ago by the National Toxicology Program that styrene is, "reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen." This classification means that there is scientific evidence suggesting that styrene causes cancer, but scientists are not entirely sure that there aren't any alternative explanations for the link. More research needs to be done to rule out chance or bias, but the research that has been done so far has found styrene to be a carcinogen, even in human studies. More info>>

• Avoid foam cups, plates, bowls and takeout containers for holding hot foods and drinks (studies have shown that chemical leaching occurs when styrene is heated)
• Don't use plastic products labeled number 6. They don't look like foam, but they do have styrene.