United States auto manufacturer General Motors recently announced that it is continuing its waste material recycling program to donate scrap insulation from GM car doors to the not-for-profit group, Empowerment Plan. The unwanted insulation will be used to make coats and sleeping bags for the homeless in several northern cities.

This year, the automaker donated two thousand yards of Sonozorb, the noise reducing and temperature controlling insulation – enough to create four hundred coats and bags for distribution through homeless shelters in Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Oregon, and New York.

The self-heating, waterproof coats are made by a team of nine seamstresses – who were once homeless. The group produces approximately one hundred and fifty coats each month and relies on donations from corporate sponsors such as General Motors.

GM officials are embracing creative solutions to waste reduction, recycling, and re-use. The company currently has one hundred and six landfill-free operation and manufacturing centers around the globe that take all waste and determine if recycling, reuse or donation or conversion to energy is the best course of action.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: One businesses trash can be another one’s treasure. Take a look at what’s in your waste disposal bin and try to see it from another person’s viewpoint – could materials be of value to a non-profit group? You might be able to save money, reduce your environmental footprint, and help those in need at the same time!