THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 5, 1995 TAG: 9503020192
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 05 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA
STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BELVIDERE LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
WHEN IT COMES to junk mail, Anne Blindt may have the last word.
The recycling coordinator for the Albemarle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority wants to help people cut down on time and paper wasted on unwanted solicitations.
Just how prolific are promotions sent via the postal service?
``The junk mail Americans receive in one day could produce enough energy to heat 250,000 homes,'' Blindt said, reading from a survey.
Every person in the United States receives about 250 pieces of third-class mail annually, and the average American spends eight months of his or her life opening junk mail, according to the U.S. Postal Service.
Of course, not everyone wants to immediately chuck junk mail. Rural residents especially may appreciate the abundance and convenience of mail offers.
``Some people love to pore over those little insurance policies and Ed McMahon's giveaways,'' said Blindt, who worked in the same capacity at the Albemarle Environmental Association before joining the solid waste management authority in January.
Within a week at her new job, she was mailing out advice on how to get rid of the vast majority of catalogs, charity solicitations and other unwanted correspondence that clogs many a mailbox.
The first tip, which could result in up to a 70 percent reduction, is to write or call the Mail Preference Service at the Direct Marketing Association, P.O. Box 9008, Farmingdale, N.Y. 11735-9008.
Look carefully at the address and label to make sure you include any variations of your name, such as John Doe and J. Doe.
Another option is to call a company's toll-free number and ask to have your name removed from their mailing list. Or simply write ``REFUSED'' on the outside of a first-class mailed envelope and send it back.
If an article has third-class or bulk rate postage, cut out the mailing label or wherever your name and address appear. Enclose a note asking to be taken off the mailing list and then send both back in a pre-addressed envelope.
Sometimes these are also pre-stamped. Other times, Blindt said, ``you'll have to spend that 32 cents to get the information back to the company.''
Blindt, who previously owned an Elizabeth City restaurant, said she's used her own advice and seen a significant decrease in junk mail, ``although some companies, like AT&T and Sprint, can be persistent.''
Worried you'll soon miss the mail? Don't fret.
``I think you'll always get back on those lists eventually,'' Blindt said, explaining that our names are normally sold once we place a mail order, subscribe to a magazine, apply for a credit card, join a club or contribute to a charity.
Eliminating junk mail is just one way to reduce household and business waste. Blindt frequently makes public appearances and supplies information on other ways we can cut back on trash.
Most require an extra step or two when a product is used up, such as sorting recyclable materials and taking them to a convenience center.
Others ask you to better scrutinize labels and lifestyles.
``It's hard to give up our love of convenience,'' Blindt acknowledges. ``I'm not free from buying convenience items myself.''
But she does bring her own cloth bags to carry groceries and shops for larger, economical items and those packaged in recyclable materials or containing recycled contents.
She also advocates environmentally safe household cleaners. ``You can do an awful lot with vinegar and baking soda and eliminate a lot of spray bottles and pump bottles and an awful lot of premixed items.''
The Albemarle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority serves seven counties in northeastern North Carolina and is located on Perry's Bridge Road in Belvidere at the old Perquimans-Chowan-Gates landfill.
For more information on recycling or the authority's programs, call 297-3302. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by DREW C. WILSON
Recycling Coordinator Anne Blindt wants to help people cut down on
the amount of time and paper wasted on unwanted solicitations.
by CNB