Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Moore Township, Northampton County, will receive new recycling bins for their public parks as a result of grants provided by Dr Pepper Snapple Group/Keep America Beautiful Park Recycling Grant Program.

Nationwide, the Park Recycling Bin Program provided funding for 900 new recycling bins in public parks across the country in 2016, making recycling more accessible for Americans enjoying the outdoors.

Now in its fourth year, the public park recycling grant program has awarded more than 3,400 recycling bins to Keep America Beautiful affiliates, local governments and other community organizations across 28 states to expand the availability of recycling.

This investment in recycling infrastructure has improved recycling accessibility and convenience in a variety of park settings, including neighborhood and larger regional parks, beaches, athletic fields and walking trails.

This year, applicants who invested local funds to purchase additional recycling bins beyond those being awarded via grant were given preference in the review process, and those who didn't receive a bin grant this year qualified for discount pricing.

Through the bin grants as well as these local investment incentives and discounts, there will be more than 1,000 new recycling bins in parks and other public spaces this year.

"We're taking aim at two challenges that communities face nationwide – cleaning up parks and other shared spaces and reducing the strain on landfills," said Vicki Draughn, vice president of corporate affairs for Dr Pepper Snapple Group. "Our partnership with Keep America Beautiful puts more recycling bins in more cities within reach of more consumers who are on-the-go, helping tackle both of those challenges."

The lack of away-from-home recycling opportunities is reflected in a recent national survey by Keep America Beautiful to understand where people normally recycle. While 92 percent said they recycled at home, only 19 percent indicated that they typically recycle in public parks.

Additional research conducted by Keep America Beautiful indicated only 12 percent of surveyed public locations had recycling infrastructure in place to recover the containers.

The Dr Pepper Snapple Group/Keep America Beautiful Park Recycling Bin Grant Program is designed to address the obstacle of overcoming a lack of recycling convenience.

"With the help of Dr Pepper Snapple Group, we're transforming public spaces into beautiful places by making sure more recyclables are being placed in proper receptacles in our parks and natural areas," said Brenda Pulley, senior vice president/recycling, Keep America Beautiful. "Our partnership is helping to make recycling more accessible and convenient, which is one of primary factors in making recycling a daily habit."

In addition to improving recycling opportunities, the grant program will make additional funds available to Keep America Beautiful community-based affiliates or other grant recipients who commit to conducting a Litter Index in conjunction with the grant to help study the effects of the recycling bins on reducing litter in the immediate areas of the bins.

The complete list of communities receiving grants is available online.

To learn more about public space recycling best practices, download "Planning for Success: Ten Tips for Designing Public Space Recycling Programs.”

Click Here for more information on the Park Recycling Grant Program.  Click HerePar to sign up for notification of future grant opportunities.

In Pennsylvania, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful is an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful.

For more information on its programs, initiatives and special events, visit the Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful website.  Click Here to sign up for regular updates from KPB, Like them on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, Discover them on Pinterest and visit their YouTube Channel. 

Also visit the Illegal Dump Free PA website for more ideas on how to clean up communities and keep them clean and KPB’s new Electronics Waste website.

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