Welcome to Close the Loop's Monthly Newsletter Issue 14 - March 2002 A Newsletter for Friends of www.close-the-loop.com _____________________________ In this issue: The Most Important "thing" to Have Warning: Arsenic on Our Children's Playgrounds? National Playground Safety Week April 22-26, 2002 Marketplace: Exceptional Products Propose an Article _____________________________ 1. The Most Important "thing" to Have Living in this materialistic society, one has to wonder, what is the most important "thing" to have?...knowledge. If we gain the knowledge of what recycled products are on the market, which companies are producing them, and which people in the universe are making a difference - then we can make environmentally sustainable purchases as consumers and as companies, plus work and live with a social conscience; the world will benefit as a result! One company making a difference is the rubber mulch manufacturer and Frank, the owner, (Winner of the 2001 Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence), who 'recycles people', read his mini-biography. Do small acts of kindness really make a difference? Absolutely, according to the Pay It Forward Foundation. The plan: to perform a kindness for someone and ask them not to return the favor, but to "pay it forward" and do a kind act for someone (preferable three more people). Started by Catherine Ryan Hyde, the Pay It Forward Foundation aims to turn this idea into a worldwide chain reaction of random acts of compassion. So now maybe it seems like those three little things couldn't add up to changing the world, but you'd be surprised. At first Trevor (the school boy who originated the idea) thought it wasn't working at all, but things were happening out there, things he couldn't see. People were paying it forward whether he knew it or not. And soon Pay It Forward became a movement that surprised even Trevor. The most important thing I can add from my own observations is this: Knowing it started from unremarkable circumstances should be a comfort to us all. Because it proves that you don't need much to change the entire world for the better. You can start with the most ordinary ingredients. You can start with the world you've got. (Excerpted from the web site), please visit www.payitforwardfoundation.com ------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Warning: Arsenic on Our Children's Playgrounds? Alarmed by arsenic found in playground mulch and dirt, the Alachua County Commission shut down five playgrounds built with posts, boards and borders made of pressure-treated wood. County environmental workers sampled the parks around Gainesville this summer. In the county's five wooden playgrounds, the average amount of arsenic turned out to be 61 times higher than the state's pollution cleanup standard for neighborhoods. One playground dirt sample -- near an ordinary wood-post border -- showed about 156 times more arsenic than the state's limit for neighborhood cleanups. To read the entire story, click on the link: ------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. National Playground Safety Week April 22-26, 2002 We invite you to help us persuade the governor in your state to declare April 22-26, 2002 as National Playground Safety Week. As of mid-March, 16 states have made this proclamation: CO, CT, FL, KY, LA, MS, NE, NM, NC, ND, OK, PA, RI, SC, TX, UT WA and WY. Each year, more than 200,000 children are injured on playgrounds, equaling an average of one playground-related emergency room visit every two and one half minutes. Most of these injuries could have been prevented. The National Program for Playground Safety focuses attention on this national problem and guides the efforts of thousands of individuals who want children to play in safer playground environments. Concerned adults and children are asked to assess their playgrounds together in recognition of National Playground Safety Week. By concentrating efforts in the following four areas, the number of playground injuries resulting in emergency room visits and death would dramatically decrease: Supervision, Age-Appropriate Design, Fall Surfacing, Equipment To keep posted or learn how you can help with state's proclamations, visit: www.uni.edu/playground/safety_week.html --------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Marketplace: Exceptional Products Upcoming Events: March 20-21 Expo '02 from 3:00 to 8:30 p.m. at the Koehler Fieldhouse East Stroudsburg University March 24-26 PRPS State Conference, Adam's Mark Hotel, Philadelphia, PA Rubber Mulch for playgrounds, keeping kids safer79% of all reported injuries on public playgrounds were attributed to falls. Specifically, 68% of the injuries involved falls to the surface below the equipment. (Reprinted from the Consumer Products Safety Commission, the Handbook for Public Playground Safety, Pub. No. 325) # Surface: 1 Wood Chips, Critical height 7 foot 2 Double Shredded Bark Mulch, Critical height 6 foot 3 Engineered Wood Fibers, Critical height 6 foot 4 Fine Sand, Critical height 5 foot 5 Coarse Sand, Critical height 5 foot 6 Fine Gravel, Critical height 6 foot 7 Medium Gravel, Critical height 5 foot 8 Shredded Tires, Critical height 10-12 foot New Products This Month at Close the Loop: Record Album Popcorn Bowl Record Album Popcorn Bowls - Made by PA musician/artist, wipe clean with damp cloth. Album labels vary according to availability. $10.00 http://sites.hsprofessional.com/closetheloop/info_RP4038.html Sweatshirt Dustbusters Sweatshirt Dustbuster, made from recycled sweatshirts - work great to remove dust, wash cars, etc. Colors vary based on available sweatshirts. 3 for $10.00 http://sites.hsprofessional.com/closetheloop/info_RP4039.html Coming Soon: SoftEdge, soft rubber border for retaining rubber mulch, easily installed, shock absorbing and weather resistant. To view all of our products, including rubber mulch, promotional pens, plastics & EcoSpun bags, please visit www.close-the-loop.com _____________________________ 5. Propose an article If you have an informative article that you would like us to feature in an upcoming newsletter, please email your article to closetheloop@msn.com . If we use your article, a link to your web site will be featured as well. As always, we are interested in any comments or feedback and would love to hear from you! _____________________________ -- Close the Loop |
Welcome to Close the Loop's Monthly Newsletter Issue 14 - March 2002 A Newsletter for Friends of www.close-the-loop.com _____________________________ In this issue: The Most Important "thing" to Have Warning: Arsenic on Our Children's Playgrounds? National Playground Safety Week April 22-26, 2002 Marketplace: Exceptional Products Propose an Article _____________________________ 1. The Most Important "thing" to Have Living in this materialistic society, one has to wonder, what is the most important "thing" to have?...knowledge. If we gain the knowledge of what recycled products are on the market, which companies are producing them, and which people in the universe are making a difference - then we can make environmentally sustainable purchases as consumers and as companies, plus work and live with a social conscience; the world will benefit as a result! One company making a difference is the rubber mulch manufacturer and Frank, the owner, (Winner of the 2001 Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence), who 'recycles people', read his mini-biography. Do small acts of kindness really make a difference? Absolutely, according to the Pay It Forward Foundation. The plan: to perform a kindness for someone and ask them not to return the favor, but to "pay it forward" and do a kind act for someone (preferable three more people). Started by Catherine Ryan Hyde, the Pay It Forward Foundation aims to turn this idea into a worldwide chain reaction of random acts of compassion. So now maybe it seems like those three little things couldn't add up to changing the world, but you'd be surprised. At first Trevor (the school boy who originated the idea) thought it wasn't working at all, but things were happening out there, things he couldn't see. People were paying it forward whether he knew it or not. And soon Pay It Forward became a movement that surprised even Trevor. The most important thing I can add from my own observations is this: Knowing it started from unremarkable circumstances should be a comfort to us all. Because it proves that you don't need much to change the entire world for the better. You can start with the most ordinary ingredients. You can start with the world you've got. (Excerpted from the web site), please visit www.payitforwardfoundation.com ------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Warning: Arsenic on Our Children's Playgrounds? Alarmed by arsenic found in playground mulch and dirt, the Alachua County Commission shut down five playgrounds built with posts, boards and borders made of pressure-treated wood. County environmental workers sampled the parks around Gainesville this summer. In the county's five wooden playgrounds, the average amount of arsenic turned out to be 61 times higher than the state's pollution cleanup standard for neighborhoods. One playground dirt sample -- near an ordinary wood-post border -- showed about 156 times more arsenic than the state's limit for neighborhood cleanups. To read the entire story, click on the link: ------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. National Playground Safety Week April 22-26, 2002 We invite you to help us persuade the governor in your state to declare April 22-26, 2002 as National Playground Safety Week. As of mid-March, 16 states have made this proclamation: CO, CT, FL, KY, LA, MS, NE, NM, NC, ND, OK, PA, RI, SC, TX, UT WA and WY. Each year, more than 200,000 children are injured on playgrounds, equaling an average of one playground-related emergency room visit every two and one half minutes. Most of these injuries could have been prevented. The National Program for Playground Safety focuses attention on this national problem and guides the efforts of thousands of individuals who want children to play in safer playground environments. Concerned adults and children are asked to assess their playgrounds together in recognition of National Playground Safety Week. By concentrating efforts in the following four areas, the number of playground injuries resulting in emergency room visits and death would dramatically decrease: Supervision, Age-Appropriate Design, Fall Surfacing, Equipment To keep posted or learn how you can help with state's proclamations, visit: www.uni.edu/playground/safety_week.html --------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Marketplace: Exceptional Products Upcoming Events: March 20-21 Expo '02 from 3:00 to 8:30 p.m. at the Koehler Fieldhouse East Stroudsburg University March 24-26 PRPS State Conference, Adam's Mark Hotel, Philadelphia, PA Rubber Mulch for playgrounds, keeping kids safer79% of all reported injuries on public playgrounds were attributed to falls. Specifically, 68% of the injuries involved falls to the surface below the equipment. (Reprinted from the Consumer Products Safety Commission, the Handbook for Public Playground Safety, Pub. No. 325) # Surface: 1 Wood Chips, Critical height 7 foot 2 Double Shredded Bark Mulch, Critical height 6 foot 3 Engineered Wood Fibers, Critical height 6 foot 4 Fine Sand, Critical height 5 foot 5 Coarse Sand, Critical height 5 foot 6 Fine Gravel, Critical height 6 foot 7 Medium Gravel, Critical height 5 foot 8 Shredded Tires, Critical height 10-12 foot New Products This Month at Close the Loop: Record Album Popcorn Bowl Record Album Popcorn Bowls - Made by PA musician/artist, wipe clean with damp cloth. Album labels vary according to availability. $10.00 http://sites.hsprofessional.com/closetheloop/info_RP4038.html Sweatshirt Dustbusters Sweatshirt Dustbuster, made from recycled sweatshirts - work great to remove dust, wash cars, etc. Colors vary based on available sweatshirts. 3 for $10.00 http://sites.hsprofessional.com/closetheloop/info_RP4039.html Coming Soon: SoftEdge, soft rubber border for retaining rubber mulch, easily installed, shock absorbing and weather resistant. To view all of our products, including rubber mulch, promotional pens, plastics & EcoSpun bags, please visit www.close-the-loop.com _____________________________ 5. Propose an article If you have an informative article that you would like us to feature in an upcoming newsletter, please email your article to closetheloop@msn.com . If we use your article, a link to your web site will be featured as well. As always, we are interested in any comments or feedback and would love to hear from you! _____________________________ -- Close the Loop |
