When I was young, my sister and I always passed the fenced yard of Ligouri Brothers Scrap Company on the way to school. Through the fence, we could see all kinds of scrap items that they sold — like metal pots and old bicycles. But what really impressed me was the huge bales of rags stacked up two stories high. Imagine how many tons of fabric they kept out of the landfills by reselling those bales!
Although the company is long gone, establishments like this were very useful before we had curbside recycling and drop-off points for donating things like clothing and fabric. Junkyards would turn a profit by reselling metal, fabrics, and other scraps that people didn’t want to someone who could reuse them.
Junkyards were not the only ones to benefit from collecting other people’s discarded stuff. My Grandpa John regularly went “junking,” as he called it. On garbage nights, he took a big wagon to bring home anything useful he found. Sometimes, it was something he could sell (like an old pot). And sometimes, he found something that the family could use. One year, it was a little Christmas tree. Junking was a way to make a few extra dollars and maybe bring home something useful for the family.
Nowadays, you can still make some money recycling metal. But what do you do with other items, like fabric scraps? I don’t know of many places that accept fabrics, but with a little research, I’ve found some places to take them.
I always research online the companies that provide the donation bins in my supermarket and laundromat because those locations are very convenient. But I want to know that my donations get reused, not just sent to the landfill. And I was pleased to learn that the company that provides the bin in my supermarket parking lot accepts fabric “for reclamation.” I put my unused fabrics in a bag labeled, “For fabric reclamation. Thank you for keeping these out of a landfill” and I happily donate there. Many charities and for-profit companies accept textiles, but they often end up in landfills if the materials cannot be reused.
When we throw something in the garbage, it goes to a landfill — wasting any potential reuse of the materials the item is made of. But by being thoughtful about our “junk,” we can learn to recognize items that someone could still use, that can be sold for a profit, or that can be recycled into something new.
That old junkyard provided a valuable service. Just because I can’t use something anymore doesn’t mean the item doesn’t still have value for reuse, reclamation, or recycling.
Feature image by Tania Melnyczuk on Unsplash