Ann Arbor's Fran Coy Salon collects hair for Gulf Coast oil spill relief efforts

Posted on Sat, May 8, 2010 : 6 a.m.

Ann Arbor's Fran Coy Salon collects hair for Gulf Coast oil spill relief efforts

By Angela Smith

Salons nationwide are donating human hair clippings to help with the oil spill relief efforts in the Gulf Coast area. A nonprofit company called Matter of Trust is collecting hair, fur and nylon pantyhose to create oil-absorbing booms. These booms can contain oil spills and one pound of hair can absorb one pound of oil. Furthermore the booms are reusable and easy to produce.

The company specializes in finding and putting abundant natural resources to good use. Anyone and everyone can participate; the website has information for teachers, students, individuals and of course, hair salons to sign up to donate.

Fran Coy's Green Team was put into place by two salon employees, Jill Mock and Leslie Nardoni. The salon has earned Washtenaw County's Waste Knot Award because of its eco-friendly practices.

Photo from Fran Coy website

Locally, Fran Coy Salon has more than 100 pounds of hair ready to ship to one of Matter of Trust’s Gulf area warehouses.

Salon owner John Coy tells me the salon has been collecting hair for just this sort of purpose for more than a year. Coy is a big recycling advocate, and has instilled many eco-friendly practices in place that have won accolades and awards for the salon.

After making their first hair clipping donation to Matter of Trust, the nonprofit ran out of storage facilities to accommodate a second donation. Coy continued to retain the clippings until they were needed. He even began to donate the hair to be used locally as a natural deer repellant.

Why has he continued to go through the trouble of collecting the hair? Because it would otherwise end up in a landfill. In his spare time, Coy once calculated that the population of Washtenaw County is likely responsible for approximately 2,779 square yards of landfill waste from hair clippings alone. Rather than be a part of the problem, Fran Coy Salon is now a part of the solution.

If you are feeling the urge to get involved with this grassroots cleanup, you can contact Matter of Trust, or simply bring your hair clippings to Fran Coy Salon in a sealed plastic bag.

Lead Shopping Blogger Angie Smith will hunt for deals and dish on the latest in retail and business news in Ann Arbor. Readers will attain notices of great deals and store happenings in and around the city. To report a news item or tip contact her at angieannarbor@gmail.com.