CINCINNATI — One group is turning trash into treasure, literally, and they’re giving it all away.
Carrie Harms has always had a knack for interior design.
“There’s so many cool things, materials that we have,” said Harms.
She designed for years, using samples for her work until she realized something: “It’s just kind of heartbreaking to throw it away when you know cool things could be done with it.”
That’s when she got an idea, and ‘Zero Landfill’ Cincinnati was born.
“Other people could use it and turn it into really great things,” said Harms.
She along with several other volunteers collected shelf after shelf of samples and materials from design firms and other companies.
It’s all materials like tile samples, art and craft materials, poster board, glass, materials that would have otherwise ended up in a landfill in Cincinnati.
She said they’ve collected a warehouse full in the last two months and expect to save what they’ve been averaging.
“Over three to four take away days, about 20,000 pounds of material that was diverted,” said Harms.
All of the extras materials won’t just be sitting in a warehouse. They’re giving it away to anyone who might be able to use it.
“We’ve had people take wallpaper samples and do custom things with their kids’ rooms and people take fabric and turn it into quilts and shirts and purses,” said Harms.
Anything that’s leftover they save and build up the stock for another giveaway.
It’s all an effort to keep more materials out of the landfill.
The group just hosted a takeaway event and is currently looking for donations and materials to help build the stockpile for the next takeaway event.
