Do you have a surplus of empty prescription bottles that you'd like to keep out of the landfill? A recent post to subreddit r/LifeProTips shares a fantastic way to do exactly that.
The scoop
A user offered one of the simplest ways to make recycling an even more fulfilling experience, especially if you're an animal lover.
The title of the post says it all. It reads: "LPT - If you love animals and hate plastic waste, consider donating your empty prescription bottles to an animal shelter."
"Lots of animal rescues will accept donations of clean, empty prescription pill bottles and reuse them to distribute foster pet meds," the caption elaborates. "Animal shelters are frequently running on limited funds, so pill bottle donations are often highly appreciated."
It's a remarkably simple tip that really doesn't require much more explanation. The only other thing to consider is reaching out to the shelter first to make sure they accept donations. Be sure to keep the prescription bottles clean and labeled.
If your local animal shelter does not accept empty prescription bottles, then your local homeless shelter or clinic might.
How it's helping
Anything we can do to make good use of plastic that might otherwise be discarded is great. We produce around 380 million tons of plastic every year, about half of which is designed for single use. Less than 9% of that plastic gets recycled, while 10 million tons of it ends up in the ocean.
A recent study determined there are around 170 trillion pieces of plastic in the ocean. Some of those pieces act like life rafts for invasive species to come and disrupt ecosystems.
Effectively recycling our old prescription pills can help alleviate some of the burden of plastic on our planet. Doing so in a way that helps animals makes the prospect all the more enticing.
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Giving me money back 💰 There are plenty of other creative ways to recycle other goods, too. If you've got old clothes, you can receive all kinds of great rewards, like movie tickets and travel deals, by recycling them through Trashie. You can also earn cash by recycling your old sneakers through GotSneakers.
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What everyone's saying
Commenters on the r/LifeProTips post were grateful for the OP's simple suggestion:
"Wow! Never thought about it. Thank you from every chronic illness patient!!," one says.
"I have dozens of empty bottles I've been saving until I found somewhere to take them. Thanks!" another says.
"Somewhat related — our city's zoo loves various kinds of yard waste - they have a long list of 'kinds,'" another adds.
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