The Alabama Environmental Council organized and still runs the oldest nonprofit recycling center in the state. It processes about 600 tons of newspaper, glass, plastic, aluminum, mixed paper and cardboard a year. They helped launch curbside recycling programs, cosponsor Christmas tree recycling, promote recycling education in schools and low-income communities, and operate a recycling hotline.

Toll Free Recycling Hotline: 1-800-982-4364.

The AEC recycling center is located at 2431 2nd Avenue North and is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Helpful brochures and staff are available to make the center more user-friendly.   Thanks for recycling!

The RecyclingCenter will be accepting the following recyclable items:

• Glass (all types, please remove any lids/tops and make sure they are washed out)
• Mixed paper (cereal boxes, box packaged foods, phone books, magazines, office paper, junk mail, etc.)
• Newspaper
• Corrugated cardboard (broken down)
• Steel, aluminum, & tin cans
• Plastics 1-7 (bottles only, lids removed, contents emptied)
• Cell Phones
• Printer Cartridges

In 2004 the Alabama Environmental Council: 

• Saved the City of Birmingham approximately $17,740.
• Saved approximately 1511 cubic yards of landfill space
• Provided over 1.3 million pounds of raw material for manufacturing, reducing the need for a similar amount of virgin material.
• Recycled seven tons of steel which saved: 17,500 pounds of iron ore, 9,800 pounds of coal, and 840 pounds of limestone.
• Prevented at least 4,572 trees from being felled.
• Avoided approximately 448 metric tons of carbon equivalent of greenhouse gas emissions.
• Reduced energy usage by approximately 12,000 million BTUs, or enough to run 55 average Alabama homes for a year.
• Reduced air emissions from waste disposal and raw material generation by approximately 905 metric tons. (847 from carbon dioxide alone.)
• Reduced waterborne waste emissions by 3 metric tons.
• Saved over 96,000 gallons of gasoline. 

Through operation of our downtown Birmingham Drop-off Recycling Center. We hope that the City of Birmingham will take these figures into account when considering our budget request for Fiscal Year 2007-2008. Please feel free to contact your city council person to let them know how important the AEC’s drop-off Recycling Center is to you. 

Check out a report on recycling by Kelley Hall! 
How to do the 3 Rs - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

informaton provided by the Alabama Environmental Council