Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, April 23, 1990 TAG: 9004220003
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: E-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: YELLOW SPRINGS, OHIO LENGTH: Short
They're in the Dumpster out back.
Leuba's farmhouse is filled with workable booty culled from Dumpsters - flashlights, cassette tapes, a baby swing, humidifiers, electric heaters, extension cords, even a stereo.
"We've got more than we know what to do with," says Leuba, who gives away a lot of what he can't use.
Leuba focuses on trash Dumpsters behind discount department stores. He has found such things as toasters, a Nintendo video game, rolls of postage stamps. The 34-year-old computer consultant and farmer, married and a father of three, has been raiding Dumpsters since he was 15.
He says his activity stems from his belief in the importance of recycling.
"Waste is more a symptom than anything else," Leuba says. "The real issue is why as a society are we consuming all of this stuff?"
Paul Connett, national coordinator for Work on Waste USA, says support for recycling and reuse is growing nationwide as more communities face the prospect of landfills and incinerators. Work on Waste USA, based in Canton, N.Y., promotes recycling and waste reduction.
"As long as we're making trash, we're part of the problem," he says. "But recycling and reuse is part of the solution."
by CNB