At nonprofit’s new flagship store, eco-friendly, bargain-savvy customers crowd the aisles.

Tim Wright, the “morning guy” on Coast 93.1 radio, told listeners last week about one way he was helping save the planet on Earth Day: He was wearing clothes from Goodwill.

“I really like shopping for clothes there,” Wright, a Scarborough resident, explained after the show aired. “You never know what you’ll find, you’re not dressing like everyone else who shops at the malls, and it’s cheap.”

He added, “I also believe it is environmentally friendly — part of the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ motto. You can save resources, and money, by donating stuff you don’t want or need to someone else who does — and help a terrific organization when you do.”

Wright made the radio announcement about his Goodwill wardrobe on Thursday, April 22 – Earth Day. It was also the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, which was established to raise awareness about the state of the environment. In its Earth Day message, Goodwill Industries of Northern New England, which opened a new South Portland store a month ago, highlighted the eco-friendly way that the nonprofit organization functions.

When people donate and shop in its stores, Goodwill noted, they’re recycling items ranging from clothing to furniture to computers that otherwise could end up in a landfill.

Wright’s comments illustrate the variety of reasons that people shop at Goodwill. A primary one is that the goods there are a bargain. All children’s’ clothes cost $1.99, for example, and most adult clothing goes for less than $5.

Also, the money that consumers spend at Goodwill stores goes to a good cause. According to Goodwill, the revenue helps provide employment opportunities for people with disabilities, those who lack education or job experience and others who face challenges finding jobs. Goodwill assists them by providing job training programs, employment placement services and other community-based programs.

Last week, when Earth Day was being observed, Goodwill stressed another reason to shop at Goodwill and donate: helping to preserve the environment.

“For more than 77 years, Goodwill Industries of Northern New England has been an environmental pioneer in Maine,” Michael Coughlin, executive director of Goodwill Industries of Northern New England, said in a statement. “Goodwill has helped divert millions of pounds of items from landfills.”

On Earth Day at Goodwill’s new flagship store in South Portland, which opened a little more than a month ago at 555 Maine Mall Road in a former Circuit City building, Goodwill spokeswoman Michelle Smith pointed out some of Goodwill’s “green” features.

One is Goodwill’s new residential computer recycling program, which has been in place about one year. At the store, a large donation receptacle held a heap of computers and computer equipment.

The computer recycling program, called Reconnect, is a partnership between Dell and Goodwill Industries. The nationwide program began in Austin, Texas, in 2004. Goodwill Industries of Northern New England began participating last year, Smith said.

“It started in February 2009, a little over a year ago,” Smith said of the program. “It’s been a great success.”

She said the goal of Goodwill Industries of Northern New England, which serves Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, was to collect 950,000 pounds of computers and computer equipment in the first year. It far exceeded that, collecting more than 1.6 million pounds, Smith said.

At Goodwill locations, people can drop off any brand of computer and also such equipment as keyboards, monitors and mouse devices, whether in working condition or not, she said. The equipment either gets repaired and re-used — with hard drives scrubbed clean — or broken down into parts and sold, Smith said.

A big advantage of the program is that the donation is free, she said. By contrast, Smith said, towns and cities frequently charge $10-$15 to dispose of old computers, she said. Donors to Goodwill also get a receipt they can use for tax deduction purposes.

She said the program keeps old computers out of the landfill and encourages people to donate all “those computers that have been sitting in their closets because they don’t want to pay to get rid of them.”

Currently, Dell contracts with a recycler to break down and recycle the computers, but Goodwill Industries of Northern New England hopes in the future to establish a program to do that work, creating more job opportunities, Smith said.

Shopping at the new South Portland store, Rob Roberson, 26, a house painter from Wells, and his wife, Aleksandra Roberson, 24, didn’t know about the computer recycling program. However, when told about it, they said they may take advantage of it.

“Who doesn’t have an old computer at home?” Rob Roberson said.

A new drive-through donation feature of the new 27,000-square-foot South Portland store – which is Goodwill’s 21st store in Maine and one of its largest — makes it easy to donate, Smith said.

The donation entrance is located next to the store’s main entrance. A protective overhang shields donors from the elements. Vehicles can drive right up in front of a set of wide glass doors that open automatically. Goodwill employees in the donation center come out and assist donors when they see a vehicle arrive.

“The easier it is, the more people donate,” Smith said.

Goodwill requests that donated items be “gently used.” However, Smith said, some people give clothing that is too worn out for anyone else to wear.

Goodwill doesn’t just toss such clothing, Smith said, but instead recycles it into handy wiping cloths, useful for a wide range of dirty chores. A bag stuffed full of Good Wipes, as the cloths are called, costs $1.49.

Of course the bulk of Goodwill’s recycling takes place in the store itself, as customers buy the donated goods that once belonged to someone else.

Nearly 100 percent of Goodwill’s donations are reused or recycled through salvage operations or retail sales, Goodwill’s website says.

“We have a lot of eco-conscious shoppers,” Smith said. “Why buy new, when you can get something second hand and keep it from a landfill?”

The store opened March 26 and Smith said it has been very busy in just one month. As of Saturday, April 24, the store had 28,510 customers and received 2,927 donations, Smith said.

Although some items are new — primarily overstock donated by businesses – most are pre-owned. The new store already “has diverted 480,032 items from landfills so far this year,” according to Goodwill’s website.

In the economic recession, Smith said, “the old stigma of the thrift store is dying off.” All kinds of shoppers are looking for bargains, she said.

Among them last week were Yarmouth residents Amanda Landry and her son, William Landry, 12.

William likes to collect jerseys and hats with the logos of sports teams — any team except one from New York – and both he and his mother said they like the wide selection of items at the new South Portland store.

“This is fantastic,” Amanda Landry said.

Another shopper — and donor – was Ann Lambert of Scarborough.

She said it didn’t occur to her last week that she was helping save the planet by donating some books at the new South Portland store, and then going shopping there. Lambert, a retired librarian, loves the store’s extensive book selection. Most hardbacks go for just $2.99.

However, when told about Goodwill’s Earth Day message, Lambert said it resonated with her. In fact, she said that’s one of the things that has drawn her to shop at Goodwill over the years.

“I’ve always thought it’s good that people are not putting things in the garbage,” she said. “They’re saving them.”

Shoppers comb the aisles at Goodwill’s flagship store in South Portland last week. (Staff photo by Tess Nacelewicz)