Memorial Day marks the traditional start of our summer season. It doesn't mean we get to take a vacation from recycling and waste reduction. Many of us will go out of town for a week or a month and rent a place or travel from place to place. It's hard to remember to recycle while on the road. Here are some tips:

• If you're renting a vacation home, ask the rental agency if recycling is available, or find out from the local town or county government web page or Public Works Department about the nearest recycling center. Many fire departments host aluminum can recycling sites, if you can't find a site that takes more items.
• Take a collection bin with you or designate a tote as the recycling receptacle so there's a convenient "target" for those cans, bottles and newspapers for you and other guests. The removal and proper sorting is then someone's "chore." No rest for recyclers, sorry.
• If you're traveling from place to place, try to keep a separate litter bag and recyclables bag until that magic stop when you see a recycling container. Many NC Department of Transportation rest stops and those in other states now feature recycling dropoffs for those travelers' cans, bottles and papers, although I can't vouch for their effectiveness.
• Tread lightly when you're traveling to minimize the tourist footprint. Despite the fact that tourism is viewed as a "clean" industry and even a "green" industry by some, there is a lot of waste associated with our desire to vacation outside our own backyards. Inflate your tires and check your motor oil before going on a trip for better mileage. Even when staying at a hotel or guest house, don't abuse the water, gas and electricity utilities.It's easy to fall into a mentality that says, "I'm paying a lot of money for this place, so I can take as long and hot a shower as I want or run the air conditioner while the doors are open." Think again about this type of extravagance and find ways to be conservative with water, electricity and gas. Your grandchildren will thank you that they might still have a beach to go to that's not in Raleigh (wait, maybe that's a good idea ... naaah!)
• At the coast a lot of us are prone to eat fish, even if they don't come from this area; it's just the thing to do. Some North Carolina species are not yet overfished. Bluefish, mackerel, mahi-mahi,, shrimp, striped bass, croaker, spot and grouper are species featured on the "Yes" list of the NC Division of Marine Fisheries (www.ncfisheries.net/stocks). Sadly, even the flounder is now in bad shape in North Carolina. So eat consciously too. A lot of towns will have farmers' markets in the summer, so check them out for fresh food for a picnic. Speaking of picnics, minimize disposables and use real silverware and plastic washable plates and cups when you can.
• Back on the home front, we want to take our hats off to White Oak Condominiums in Carrboro for their work sponsoring a recent zero waste move out. They featured Orange Community Recycling's carts for collecting used clothing, household goods, canned goods and other usable items for local charities. Shadowood Apartments in Chapel Hill kicks off their zero waste move out effort this weekend with a set of carts for reusable goods for charity and a new set of (used) recycling bins at their swimming pool for aluminum cans and plastic bottles. Their staff has agreed to watch over the roll carts and the bins to ensure good quality recycling and reused goods. New residents will also get an apartment recycling bin as part of their move-in pack.
• Two final notes: Orange Community Recycling seeks a few good recycling assistants who want part-time paid recycling employment mostly on weekends, staffing festivals and fairs as well as providing recycling education at apartment complexes, businesses and conducting surveys. Ask us more at 968-2788 or recycling@co.orange.nc.us

And now that compact fluorescent lights are all the eco-rage, don't forget to recycle them as hazardous waste at the end of their useful lives. They contain mercury, as do most fluorescent tubes.