Colorado lawmakers kill phone book bill
That’s the exact title from the Aurora Sentinel on March 3rd. As the article reported:
Colorado lawmakers have killed a bill that would have allowed people to stop getting telephone books delivered for five years.
A House committee rejected the proposal Tuesday after directory publishers argued they’re already stopping delivery for up to three years to people who request it online. While they said they had no incentive to send books to people who don’t want them, unionized publisher employees feared the bill could cost jobs.
Kudos to Valley Yellow Pages on Haitian Relief Efforts
Kudos to Valley Yellow Pages which raised $21,000 to help those in the aftermath of the massive earthquake that struck Haiti earlier this year. The company has also been encouraging other local companies to donate as well.
The Fresno-based company matched dollar for dollar the contributions made by 79 employees who donated through payroll deductions and vacation time pay.
Sieg Fischer, president and CEO of Valley Yellow Pages noted in the company’s press release that:
“This is an easy way that we can help those in desperate need and we challenge other local businesses to do the same. With other events displacing the Haiti earthquake in the news, it’s important to realize that donations are still greatly needed, and whatever employees are able to give quickly adds up.”
The company indicated that all of the funds were sent directly to the Red Cross and Salvation Army, specifically marked for Haiti relief efforts.
Amarillo, TX Continues Recycling Program
In a program which was started in 1991, the “Keep Amarillo Beautiful” kicked off its annual directory/telephone book recycling program on Monday (link to article).
Twenty-four-hour drop-off locations are provided throughout the town.
We noted in a prior post, that Amarillo has been one of the most proactive efforts on recycling. In the prior post we noted that:
In 2008, more than 127 tons or 254,000 books were recycled compared with 2007’s 70 tons or 140,000 pounds, according to Keep Amarillo Beautiful.
Great effort in Amarillo!!
YPA: Local Florists Bloom for Valentine’s Day
From Yellow Pages Association release:
Americans nationwide will turn to the Yellow Pages “Florists” heading this month almost twice as much as average. One in every three users does not have a specific floral shop in mind when referencing the Yellow Pages, but when they do, 85 percent follow up with a purchase (1). Over the course of the year there are more than 103 million references to the “Florists” heading (1).
Nearly half of all references are for flower arrangements or bouquets (46 percent) with the remaining references for flower delivery services (20 percent) and other items like garden plants and memorial flowers (19 percent) (1). The average Cupid spends $74 at the point of purchase (1), and according to the Society of American Florists (SAF), the most common flowers purchased this month are roses.
Also like the suggestions from the Society of American Florists on how to keep those roses fresh: http://bit.ly/aNJZvu
Napa City Relies on Printed Yellow Pages to Get the Word Out
When the City of Napa, CA wants to get the word out on how to recycle, how do they do that?? Of course they have a website (link). But they also rely heavily on the printed Yellow Pages which are delivered to every home, even some that get their noses out of joint that they receive them (full story):
Learn more at www.NapaRecycling.com or in the phone book yellow pages under “Recycling.”
This way the message reaches everyone, not just the Internet elite.
Print Yellow Pages Environmental Summary
good post by Michael Kust of TMP on efforts by industry to be environmentally sensative:
Overall, the creation of a print Yellow Pages directory is less harmful to the environment than one might think. In my opinion, the industry has taken its awareness of the environment to the next level by allowing households to opt out of receiving a directory they do not use.
Post also provides a link to a study by TMP on local search usage.
Hawaiin Elementary School Rewarded for Recycling Efforts
Kudos to Yellow Pages publisher – The Berry Company for recognizing the St. Joseph Elementary School with a check for $700 for first place in this year’s “Think Yellow, Go Green Telephone Directory Recycling Contest”. The contest included over 50 schools from five neighboring islands (Hawaii, Kauai, Lanai, Maui and Molokai).
The school collected nearly 7,000 pounds of directories, the equivalent of more than 2,300 phone books. In total, Hawaii schools helped The Berry Company collect and recycle more than 105 tons of outdated directories during the 2009 contest.
Full article link here….
Yellow Pages Group Releases New ecoGuide
The Canadian based Yellow Pages Group began inclusion of its new “ecoGuide” which is located within the first pages of the 2009-2010 Calgary Yellow Pages. The ecoGuide was created in partnership with Earth Day Canada and The City of Calgary. The guide, which is also available online at http://calgary.yellowpages.ca, is intended to be a local reference with helpful tips on responsible consumption. It includes:
- a directory to Reuse & Recycle covering more than 400 household items such as tires, computers, electronics, mattresses, carpets and smoke detectors) to be disposed of ecologically and a list of addresses of where to take them
- a list of materials that are accepted/refused in recycling bins, along with details on the collection of green and hazardous domestic waste
- 35 ecological certifications to help consumers make more responsible purchases
- 15 simple ways to reduce our environmental impact (composting, tempering temperature reduce the water consumption, etc.) while saving fuel, electricity, water and of course, money.
The Recycle and Reuse directory should be a useful tool for residents to use in their daily efforts to support the environment. For example, is a pizza box recyclable? Apparently in some municipalities it is not, but it is accepted in The City of Calgary’s recycling program.
Kudo’s to YPG for this new consumer tool. The full press release can be found here:
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Yellow-Pages-Group-TSX-YLO.UN-1054802.html
Louisiana Kids Recycle Old Directories
Good to see the effort from Tioga Junior High School students in the Rapides Parish schools in Louisiana, who collected 5,884 books for the annual telephone book recycling collection program. Link to article: http://www.thetowntalk.com/article/20091005/NEWS01/910050319
We can get books recycled if we can increase awareness of the recycling programs in local communities, especially those that don’t have curbside recycling programs.
Cincinnati Bell Directory Adds Recycling Program
Kudos to the Cincinnati Reds and Cincinnati Bell Directory for working together on a new program to encourage their baseball fans to recycle old phone books/directories.
All fans that brought an old phone book to the Reds vs. Los Angeles Dodgers series which ran August 28-30 received a voucher good for a buy-one-get-one free ticket offer to the Reds vs. Florida Marlins game on Sept. 19.
Even Reds outfielder Chris Dickerson got involved — he is the founder and chief executive officer of WePlayGreen.org. Dickerson wants to spread the word about the importance of recycling and alternative energy.
For more, go to: http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story/Recycle-Old-Phone-Books-Get-Rewarded-By-The-Reds/Qtt7oL6aYE2g1e0DRcoSRA.cspx
