When I would raid the freezer as a kid, every so often, instead of a grabbing a carton of ice cream or cup of Italian ice, I’d end up sinking my spoon into a yogurt cup full of frozen turkey grease by mistake. My mom used to collect and freeze it, to keep it from coagulating and jamming up our pipes when we poured it down the drain.

According to the City of Portsmouth, NH, my mom was ahead of the curve on that one.  City officials recently launched a campaign to increase residents’ awareness of a new recycling plan for cooking oil and grease. Once the sole domain of subplots on The Simpsons, soaring gas prices have made cooking oil and grease reclamation a serious, profitable business.

In the case of Portsmouth, a local biofuel company is offering free disposal of the grease to residents in a 1,000-gallon tank near the city’s existing Public Works infrastructure. That company, Green Bean Bio-Fuel, then processes the waste into biodiesel and heating oil.

While not as convenient as curbside pickup, this system makes safe, efficient grease disposal as simple as a trip to the dump, with no added taxpayer burden. Given the savings on home plumbing that result as well, it's an obvious win-win situation.