The City of Milwaukee has been declared the winner in the large city category in the second annual “Cans For Cash: City Recycling Challenge,” a two-week contest held to increase the collection of aluminum UBCs (used beverage containers).
As part of an America Recycles Day event held at its Mayfield Heights, Ohio, office building, aluminum producer Novelis Inc. announced the 2005 “Cans For Cash” winners.
Milwaukee won in the large city category by collecting more than 1 million pounds of UBCs in the first two weeks of September.
Other civic winners include Knoxville, Tenn., where 183,000 pounds of UBCs were collected; Des Plaines, Ill., where 356,000 pounds were collected; and Artesia, Calif., where 73,000 pounds were collected. Each city won in one of four categories based on population size.
In all participating cities, more than 107 millions cans were estimated to be collected, compared to 62 million in 2004, representing a 73 percent increase.
The “Cans For Cash” competition was co-sponsored by Novelis Inc. and the U.S. Conference of Mayors. “Participating cities should be excited and proud that they contributed to the recycling of more than 3 million pounds of aluminum cans,” says U.S. Conference of Mayors President Beverly O’Neill, who is the mayor of Long Beach, Calif.
Four cities also won honorable mention in the contest: Louisville, Ky., Salt Lake, City, Utah, Fargo, N.D., and Monticello, Ind.