12 Ways to Recycle Used Coffee Grounds

Photo: greenstudentu.com

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COMMUNITY NEWS

Did you know that the average American consumes about 3 cups of coffee a day? That’s a lot of used coffee grounds going into the trash.

There are actually many ways you can recycle and reuse your old coffee grounds to help preserve the environment and maintain your health.

I’ve researched many sources to find the best ways to reuse old coffee grounds.

You’d be surprised at just how many different methods have worked for people:

1. Touch up furniture and other wood scratches with grounds and a Q-tip
2. Sprinkle around areas where pesky insects, slugs and snails dwell to drive them away
3. Mix with soil as a natural fertilizer for plants
4. Dye clothing or paper
5. Rub into your dog as an organic flea dip
6. Fill old nylons and hang in your closet or fridge to repel odors
7. Use to fill old pin cushions
8. Scrub away grease and grime from pots and pans
9. Throw on ashes before cleaning out the fireplace to reduce dust from spreading
10. Feed to worms to help with your garden
11. Rub on your hands to eliminate odors
12. Mix 1/4-cup grounds with one egg white and massage onto face like a mud pack

If you’re not an avid coffee drinker but you live near a coffee shop or café, you can always ask them for the old grounds. Places like Starbucks actually give bags of used grounds away to people who use them for their home and gardens.

Recycling is just one way that we can help maintain the natural beauty of our environment, so next time you drink a cup of coffee save those coffee grounds for future use!

- Trish Smith
Copywriter, Green Student U, a blog-style site that introduces today's students to a wide variety of global environmental issues by recognizing college campus green initiatives and personal success stories, as well as how the world is being shaped by environmental reform.

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