Instead of throwing away packing styrofoam from their holiday gifts, residents stacked it for a good cause in New Brighton.
Council Member Debbie Rose and nonprofit P.S., Recycle It hosted their 1st Holiday Foam Recycling Event on Saturday at Christ Church New Brighton.
The event was part of a citywide attempt to keep styrofoam out of landfills.
Organizers say it felt great to see residents drop off their styrofoam, particularly because it's so often thrown away.
"It's important because we believe if the city can recycle foam, it should. There's no reason to send this waste into the landfill," said organizer Rod Kucera.
"I think, maybe, to do a little help towards preventing some global warming, and I think we really ran out of room to throw out garbage," said participant Harry Bavaro of Westerleigh.
Council members hosted this event across all five boroughs.