Good Garbage

With over half of our landfills filled to capacity, and incinerator use posing its own pollution problems, more and more communities are turning to programs which encourage people to reduce, re-use, and recycle the many paper, glass, and plastic products that our wasteful society consumes in ever larger amounts. Aimed at a middle school audience, this low-budget but information rich video looks at the curbside recycling program in Maryland's Montgomery County, and follows the various items of garbage to their destinations, ranging from trash compactor to rebirth as a new art piece in the home. In addition, the program looks at the community hotline which Montgomery County has set up to handle calls concerning recycling questions, and includes a clever rap song about what happens at a recycling plant. The constant mention of Montgomery County gives the program more of a regional than national flavor, and the approach is decidedly low-tech; but the writing is good and the information is solid. Still, a better choice here would be Recycling, from the Earth at Risk series (VL-4/93), and, for younger viewers, The RE Team (VL-3/93). Larger collections, however, and regional libraries in Maryland should consider adding this. Recommended, with reservations. (R. Pitman)