We are quite fond of recycling contests around here especially when they are spearheaded by elementary schools and youth organizations.

Over the weekend in California’s Central Valley the winner of their first Recycle. Goal recycling contest was announced by the contest’s sponsors, the Fresno Fuego, Keep California Beautiful, and the American Chemistry Council. Northern California’s contest is an offshoot that was inspired by southern California’s program now entering its third year.

Recycle. Goal pitted soccer teams from the California Odyssey Soccer Club against each other in an off-the-field battle eight week battle to collect and recycle the most materials. At the end of the contest the Girls Under 13 Red Team were declared the winners after turning in almost 1,970 pounds of stuff including over 300 pounds of plastics. In total all teams that participated successfully diverted 4,280 pounds of materials headed to a landfill, including nearly 1,500 pounds of plastic. The release did not mention what the girls had won for their hard work.

"We all benefit because this competition teaches these young athletes about recycling and keeping our communities clean," said Fabricio Codeceira, director of corporate sales for the Fresno Fuego, a minor league soccer team which is a member of the United Soccer Leagues and a sponsor of the competition. "We are proud to partner with the American Chemistry Council and Keep California Beautiful to provide programs like this that teach lessons beyond the soccer field."

The second annual Recycle. Goal contest in southern California was conducted at the end of last year from August 20th through October 31st.  After that nine-week collection period the twenty-five soccer teams in that challenge alone amassed over 26,000 pounds of materials with a total of 2,600 plastics recycled.  The grand totals were announced via a blog on 2valuable2waste.com. The blog mentioned the 2011 total weighed 20,000 more pounds than what was recycled during the 2010 inaugural competition.

The winning team for that challenge was the Anaheim Impact (boys 14 and under) from the Anaheim Soccer Association. Their prize was a Los Angeles Galaxy led clinic and the team was invited to a Galaxy game to receive high fives from the players before the start of the match.

"This contest works. We've been with Recycle. Goal. since the beginning, and we're pleased to see it spread to other parts of the state," said Christine Flowers, executive director of Keep California Beautiful. "We support all programs that promote recycling, especially ones that create a new generation of recyclers."