Blog

Keep Louisiana Beautiful is proud to give Grounds Krewe a Greener Grounds Grant to support their involvement in Recycle Dat!, a project of the City of New Orleans and New Orleans & Co. focused on Mardi Gras recycling. Recyclables collected through this initiative include clean and unbroken throws, PET and glass bottles, and aluminum cans.

Grounds Krewe is a 501(c)(3) non-profit with a mission to reduce the waste impact of New Orleans’ many special events with a specific focus on the 2.1 million pounds of unrecycled trash that fills streets, storm drains, and landfills during just 12 days of Carnival season.

Grounds Krewe is now in its seventh year of an “On The Route” parade throw and disposable waste recycling program now called “Recycle Dat!” The initiative, which brings together several local and national partners from the environmental, recycling, and sustainable tourism sectors, provides parade-goers opportunities to recycle beads, PET and glass bottles, and cans. Highly visible, branded recycling stations along a targeted section of the uptown parade route, staffed by stationary and roaming volunteers, provide monitored recycling bins and pass out/accept free “throw donation” bags.

Donated throws are turned over to Arc of Greater New Orleans, as well as several other non-profits supporting community members with intellectual disabilities around the greater New Orleans area, for sorting, re-packing, and reuse in future parades. The amounts are recorded and reported each season. The Recycle Dat! program raises awareness about the need to reduce parade waste and makes it convenient for resident and visitor spectators to donate unwanted throws easily, right as they enjoy parades.

In addition to repurposing Carnival throws, the Recycle Dat! program allows parade-goers to deposit recyclables into single stream x-frame recycling bins which are then redeemed for their scrap value to benefit local non-profit organizations. Glass bottles collected at recycling hubs and stations are brought to Glass Half Full, a project partner, to be ground into sand used for coastal restoration projects and flood protection.

Project partners for Recycle Dat! include the City of New Orleans Office of Resilience and Sustainability, New Orleans & Company, Coca-Cola, Greater New Orleans Foundation, Entergy, Every Can Counts, Louisiana Beverage Association, American Beverage, ArcGNO, EMR Metal Recycling, Glass Half Full, The Can Manufacturers Institute, Tulane University, Osprey Initiative, The Green Project, R&R Recycling & Disposal, Nola Cans 4 Food, Academy of the Sacred Heart, Premium Parking, Christ Church Cathedral, Nole Special Events Venue, Soul, Grow Dat Youth Farm, Tree, and Keep Louisiana Beautiful. See all partners listed here.

RecycleDat! is for the benefit of the residents of New Orleans and millions of visitors who enjoy one of the world’s most important cultural celebrations which remains free and unsponsored to all.