Fuquay-Varina is competing for $100,000 grant in nationwide challenge that launches local recycling rewards program

Americans recycle only one-and-a-half pounds of the more than four pounds of waste they generate daily, adding unnecessary waste to our nation’s landfills. In an effort to help slow this trend and further inspire waste reduction efforts, today, Fuquay-Varina announced their participation in the SC Johnson Green Choices Recycling Challenge, a nationwide contest that aims to increase household recycling participation in 50 communities across the United States. The community with the highest reported recycling participation will receive a $100,000 grant from SC Johnson to put toward a local sustainability project. The Challenge kicks off a new partnership with Recyclebank, the company that rewards people for taking everyday green actions with discounts and deals.

“Fuquay-Varina is thrilled to be representing North Carolina in the SC Johnson Green Choices Recycling Challenge as it is the perfect way to kick-start the new recycling rewards program and local participation,” said John W. Byrne, mayor of Fuquay-Varina. “We encourage everyone to get involved—residents will have the opportunity to protect the environment, invigorate the local economy and help keep Fuquay-Varina clean, while earning everyday savings from Recyclebank and working toward the grant from SC Johnson.”

While the Recycling Challenge aims to increase consumers’ recycling, it will also contribute to SC Johnson’s goal of becoming landfill neutral by 2016. Through their operational commitments as well as with the help of Recyclebank and communities across the country, the company will eliminate more than 480 million pounds of waste from the nation’s landfills, which is equivalent to more than its U.S. waste footprint. The company defines its waste footprint as all its U.S. manufacturing, office and consumer packaging waste and shipping materials.

“Companies have a responsibility to make more environmentally conscious products and operate more sustainably, but we also need to find ways to inspire families and help them to make green choices, like recycling, and everyday action,” said Fisk Johnson, Chairman and CEO of SC Johnson. “The Recycling Challenge, along with our recently announced Sustainable Behavior Change Program, will help us to better understand what motivates people to change their actions when it comes to waste reduction.”

The SC Johnson Sustainable Behavior Change Program is a five-year research project that will bring together academics, environmentalists and consumers in an effort to identify what drives behavior change around a number of sustainable actions. The program’s initial research will dovetail with the Recycling Challenge.

Fuquay-Varina joins more than 300 communities across the U.S. and U.K. that have implemented Recyclebank to help increase recycling rates through incentives, and reward residents with deals on everyday household and grocery items. In addition to significant environmental benefits, increased recycling also has a positive impact on municipal finances through disposal cost savings and revenues from the sale of recyclables.

To participate, Fuquay-Varina residents need to sign up for a free Recyclebank account and report their recycling activity. Residents can visit www.recyclebank.com/greenchoices and follow the prompts to get started. Once a Recyclebank member, residents can earn points by simply reporting their weekly recycling efforts on the Recyclebank website. Residents can also use the Recyclebank smartphone app on their iPhone and Andriod devices to report their recycling, check their Recyclebank Points balance and discover eligible reward offers. In order for a resident’s recycling activity to count towards the Challenge, residents must report their recycling efforts at least once a month. A leaderboard at www.recyclebank.com/greenchoices will track progress each month, and the winning community will be announced in January 2013.

Recyclebank is similar to a frequent flyer program; rather, members instead earn points for living a more sustainable lifestyle. Members can use those points to “shop” at Recyclebank.com for rewards such as discounts and deals from hundreds of reward partners in more than 10 categories including food and beverage, health, beauty, home, clothing, accessories and gifts.

“At Recyclebank, we believe that the key to unlocking the greatest environmental impact depends on businesses, government and communities working together to inspire and motivate everyday green actions,” said Jonathan Hsu, chief executive officer at Recyclebank. “Through our partnership with SC Johnson and innovative municipalities in our program, we can reach an even wider audience to better educate and incentivize a daily routine to the benefit of our environment, one small step at a time.”

The Recyclebank rewards-for-recycling program and the Recycling Challenge began Monday, July 2, 2012. Residents can sign up for the free Recyclebank program at www.recyclebank.cmom/greenchoices. For more information on SC Johnson’s sustainability efforts, visit www.scjohnson.com/greenchoices, follow them on Twitter @SCJGreenChoices, access its 2011 Public Report at www.scjohnson.com/2011report. For more information on recycling in Fuquay-Varina, visit fuquay-varina.org or call 919-753-1027.

A Certified B Corporation, Recyclebank has been recognized as a Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum, a Champion of the Earth by the United Nations Environment Programme and for Outstanding Excellence in Public/Private Partnerships from the U.S. Conference of Mayors. Recyclebank is headquartered in New York City. For more information, visit www.Recyclebank.com.