When you consider the amount of waste the average person in Florida generates each day (approximately five pounds, according to Waste Management), it makes sense to recycle everything you possibly can, right? The obvious answer is: OF COURSE! However, many of us may be unwittingly sabotaging our own efforts at keeping trash out of the landfill.
“Collier County is working hard to exceed the state’s 75% recycling goal by 2020, and every little bit counts,” said Margie Hapke, public information coordinator for Collier County. “When families recycle correctly, they contribute to our goal of increasing recycling rates. When they recycle incorrectly, it is a missed op-portunity to capture those recyclables toward the county’s recycling rates.” Not only does incorrect recycling increase waste, it costs an enormous amount of money. Moreover, this type of contamination negates the efforts of families who recycle correctly. According to Dawn McCormick, director of communications in Florida for Waste Management, “When families place non-recyclables in curbside recycling containers, those items slow down machinery and contaminate the good recyclables. Employees must climb down and clear machinery. In the last several years, we have seen a 25-30% increase in recycling rates due to larger carts, which is positive. However, we really need to get back to cleaner recycling.”
“Once recycling has been collected curbside in Collier County, it’s put in semi-tractor trailers and taken to Waste Management’s Reuter Recycling Center in Pembroke Pines for processing,” said Hapke. “A visual inspection is made of each load. A load that is determined to contain more than 20% contamination can be rejected from the plant. Those materials then must be taken to a landfill and treated as municipal solid waste (i.e., buried like regular garbage). When that happens, not only are the recyclable materials lost, it costs the company in terms of having to pay tipping fees at the landfill. In addition, the efforts of the people who recycle correctly are wasted because others are careless or confused about what is and isn’t recyclable.”
Plastics
Plastic shopping bags and film plastic (things like bread bags, sandwich bags, etc.) should not be placed in the recycling cart. Local grocery stores and some big box stores offer plastic bag recycling. Recycling the single use plastic shopping bags through these programs is much more efficient.
Plastic air pillows used for packaging are made from plastic film and are not recyclable in our curbside program, so they should not be placed in recycling carts. Plastic packaging material can be reused or donated to local packaging stores for reuse. No plastic bags or any kind of plastic film – even if it has the recycle symbol on it – should be placed in recycling carts.
Bottles and Caps
Plastic water bottles, along with their caps, are indeed recyclable. Additionally, plastic laundry detergent bottles, along with plastic soap and household product bottles – and their lids – are recyclable. Glass jars and bottles are recyclable, but only if the jar is cleaned out completely. Glass jars should be rinsed or wiped out before placing in recycling cart. If a jar isn’t cleaned out completely, it will contaminate the whole bin. The metal lids on glass jars ARE recyclable, as long as they are clean and dry.
Cardboard and Paper
Pizza boxes are not recyclable, unless they are completely clean and free from grease (which they usually are not). For cardboard boxes that contain a mixture of cardboard and plastic you must remove the plastic and then place the cardboard in the curbside cart.
Mixed paper like junk mail, magazines, envelopes, Post-It notes, and other paper products can be placed in your recycling container. Used paper towels, napkins, and tissues are not accepted in your recycling container. Envelopes with plastic windows may be placed in recycling carts.
When it comes to wrapping paper and tissue paper: Only clean, dry paper is accepted in your recycling cart; no foil or flocked wrapping paper is allowed. Tissue wrapping paper is acceptable.
Styrofoam
Styrofoam coffee cups and Styrofoam packaging material are NOT recyclable. However, the county encourages residents to recycle certain Styrofoam. Confused yet? Collier County’s recycling program allows the recycling of the foam trays that meat and vegetables are packaged on (remove and throw away the clear plastic shrink wrap) and egg cartons only. Styrofoam cups, plates, carry-out food clam shells, and packaging materials are not accepted.
Batteries
Don’t try to recycle batteries in your curbside cart! Rather, Collier County accepts all batteries at county Recycling Drop-Off Centers. The best, most effective way to recycle is to only recycle items you are SURE about. Otherwise, you risk contamination of your bin and other’s clean recyclables, which actually hurts the environment and uses unnecessary resources. Don’t engage in wish-cycling. When in doubt, throw it out!