Redirect Your Outdated Directories

Does anyone still use telephone books?

And by use, I mean to actually look up phone numbers – not just prop up a wobbly table or practice your own version of “Mythbusters” Episode 106, when it was demonstrated that it took the force of two tanks to pull apart two interwoven phone books because of the friction between the pages. (That was pretty cool, though, so I don’t blame you for trying to re-create it at home.)

If you do use phone books for finding information, it’s more than likely that they are outdated. There are web sites that are continually updated to include new businesses and updated contact information; whereas the books, once printed, cannot be updated.

So what do you do with piles of old phone books? Instead of letting them clog up the bottom of your hallway closet like mine tend to do, why not participate in a new drive to recycle outdated phone directories?

Most Indiana communities certainly have a way for residents to recycle these directories. 

As part of the AT&T Real Yellow Pages Project ReDirectory phone book recycling program, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc., AT&T and Republic Waste Services & Recycling of Indiana are teaming up in the Indianapolis area to provide opportunities for residents and businesses to recycle old phone books while helping schools.

The seven-week contest encourages 11 Indianapolis schools to collect and recycle outdated phone books, while having the opportunity to earn money based on the number of books collected. Through December 3, 18 locations across the city will accept the phone books. For each ton of phone directories collected, AT&T is contributing $20 to each school (up to 10 tons each). Republic Services is adding an additional $250 to the school that collects the most directories.

For more information, as well as the list of recycling centers accepting the phone books, visit this web site.