When you think of recycling your Christmas tree, perhaps you don't first think of how it might help out your local water-dwelling creatures. But if so, you are remiss; this year, the Riverside County Waste Management Department and the California Department of Fish and Game are working together to turn your former ornament-hanger into a habitat for small fish. more ›

National grocery retailer Supervalu, whose Albertsons brand stores are one of our regional grocery options, recently announced they will enact a "zero waste" model at 40 of their stores. The eco-friendly move will begin with primarily focusing on Albertsons stores, says TreeHugger. more ›

In our unending effort to be the city onto whom the least blame will fall when the planet implodes with waste, LA officials launched an initiative today that will allow residents to throw empty juice, milk, soup and wine cartons into blue recycling bins. Until today, those wishing to go green could recycle a number of other household products, including plastic, paper, batteries and aluminum beverage containers, among others. more ›

Thanks to detailed sustainability planning and multiple trash-sorting stations at last weekend's Silver Lake Jubilee, the event successfully diverted 90 percent of trash produced at the event from landfills. According to Sustain LA, of the trash generated by dozens of vendors and more than 10,000 attendees, 3,600 pounds of waste was diverted to compost & recycling (over 2,000 pounds to compost alone) leaving 400 pounds of trash to landfill. more ›

Is it the dangling ornaments glinting with sparkle that triggers warm memories? Or is it the scent of fresh pine wafting through the house carried on balmy SoCal breezes? If you're getting a Christmas tree this holiday season, and you didn't rush to your favorite local lot or to the garage where your faux tree is stashed right after the Thanksgiving leftovers were tossed in Tupperware, you've got some decisions to make: Real, fake, or rented? more ›

Today is America Recycles Day, an observation that has been in place on November 15th since 1997. Schools, communities, retailers, and groups mark the day by holding events that focus on recycling, and provide people with a chance to learn and participate. more ›

Bargain shoppers and vintage hunters rejoice! L.A. is a great city for flea markets, and the Citysearch has compiled a list of the eight best spots to hit up around town. Perennial favorite Rose Bowl makes the list, with a caveat about the admission fee and a tip to BYO lunch. The newest flea market to open up is the LA Flea Market, which debuted last month at Dodger Stadium with rousing success. Other spots to check out: Melrose Trading Post, Pasadena City College, Santa Monica Outdoor Antique & Collectible Market, Long Beach Outdoor Antique & Collectible Market, Santa Monica Art and Antique Fair, and Space 15 Twenty. more ›

You'll notice an absence of Christmas carols and pop tunes on the radio, you may have already sorted your gifts into keep, return, and re-gift piles, and right about now a turkey sandwich sounds really good. So when is it time to take down the tree? more ›

The ever-so progressive and eco-friendly city of Santa Monica is at it again, this time with sewer clogging fats, oil and grease (FOG), which now can be collected for a new future as biofuel. In parking structures 2 through 6, restaurants can jettison their FOG for free, the city announced today. more ›

Local ecoblogger GreenLAGirl reports that Sierra magazine has published their annual list of the 10 colleges in the country that rank as the greenest, and our UCLA makes the cut at a respectable #9. However, at 60%, the campus' recycling rate is actually lower than the City of Los Angeles overall, who can boast we have "the highest recycling rate out of the 10 largest U.S. cities," at 65%. more ›

LAist has eaten bacon pizza at Mozza, but we turn our attention to the soap in the bathroom. Customers can now wash their hands with soap made from the recycled cooking grease in the Mozza kitchens. more ›

It's a Christmas Tree, a Hanukkah Bush, or a Kwanzaa Shrub. Call it what you will, but the bottom line is, it's a chopped down tree you hauled home on the roof of your car sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve and it's now a brittle fire hazard taking up space in the house you resolved on January 1st to "Keep More Clean!" You may have also resolved to "Be More Green!" so let's start with recycling that Christmas Tree. more ›

more ›

Do you recycle? Really recycle. Most of us try to get our cans and bottles in a recycling bin. Some of us compost. Some of us even still read a paper newspaper and recycle that too. Now what about everything else? more ›

Southern California Edison (SCE) announced that they've now recycled 700,000 refrigerators in the last 15 years since the beginning of their Refrigerator and Freezer Recycling Program. The program has two parts: (1) you get $50 to recycle the fridge, and (2), you get another $50 if you buy a new Energy Star qualified fridge. According to SCE's director of energy efficiency per the Power Plug blog, people spend about an extra $300 a year with older refrigerators. more ›

Submitted and authored by Emily Lerman more ›

Yesterday, a City Council committee passed a food recycling pilot project that would give 8,700 homes in South LA 2-gallon composting bins (however, still no locally based farm being provided). The Daily News says that 27% of black-bin waste is food equalling out to 230,000 tons of it a year. Food would be picked up and taken to a downtown transfer station and hauled up to a nearby Bakersfield composting facility. more ›

The United States Postal Service furthered its efforts to embrace new, green technologies this week, even as these technologies eat away at the USPS' age-old business model of letter delivery. more ›

Heal the Bay gives out free canvas bags for "A Day Without A Disposable Bag Day" more ›

Now that Thanksgiving is over and Christmas Tree shopping is in order, it's a good time keep in mind that when it comes time to get rid of that tree, you can recycle it. If you have a green yard trimmings container, then you can the tree up and place it in there. If not, it's a good thing the Department of Public Works is already pushing their Christmas Tree Recycling Program that will be... more ›

LAist Editor Tony Pierce has blogged here non-stop for more than a year deserving a well-earned vacation (and did he ever earn it). While out of town, we decided to have a little fun and bring some guest day editors in from around the blogLAsphere starting with Siel, our friend over at www.GreenLAGirl.com. Here's to a green start of your week! 1. Age and occupation: 28, grad student and blogger 2. Home town: Los Angeles... more ›