GOOD NEWS ABOUT RECYCLING

There is some good news about recycling. Even though wholesale recycling hasn't caught on in this country, there are efforts here and there that point toward the day when the throwaway society will be transformed into the use-again society.

Here is one example. The League of Women Voters in Cape Girardeau is working with youngsters in the southeastern part of the city to encourage more recycling awareness. And it appears to be working. As more and more youths become interested, more and more parents also will make recycling part of the normal routine.

Another bit of good news comes from the Northeast Missouri town of Chillicothe. There, city residents already are recycling more than half of the solid waste they produce. This remarkable record is due to incentives and awareness.

That is what it will take in the long run to make recycling commonplace: a cost incentive plus a marketplace for recycled items.

The Southeast Missourian also is exceeding state-imposed guidelines on use of recycled newsprint. The very newspaper you are reading is approximately half recycled newsprint, far exceeding the current 20 percent requirement.

Recycling requires everyone and every business to be involved, if it is going to be successful. Hats off to the League of Women Voters and the residents of Chillicothe. And the Southeast Missourian will take a bow too.