When I think about the word “recycling”, the first thing that comes to mind is plastic food and drink containers that I take out to the curb each week. However there are different ways to recycle different things and materials. The new emphasis on environmentalism in modern culture has brought fourth some creative ways to recycle furniture. For example, an innovative chair company, Emeco, recently started a “Cash for Clunkers Chairs” program. Who would have guessed that you can send in your old aluminum chair to be melted down and recreated into a beautiful new modern chair with a lower carbon footprint?! Emeco is an international company whose chairs are made from 80% recycled aluminum. And though Emeco needs to transport their products over fairly large distances, they try to reduce their environmental impact in other ways. Emeco uses completely recyclable packing materials –no polystyrene packing peanuts here! Emeco also looks out for the health of their customers by making sure their products do not emit harmful VOCs. More about Emeco chairs can be found at http://www.emeco.net
But if you aren’t looking for aluminum chairs there are plenty of other green furniture companies popping up all the time. Furniture that is economically, environmentally, and socially responsible is becoming more and more available to everyday consumers.