On America Recycles Day—November 15—Project Clean Water stopped by Fox 5 to do a recycling quiz on some commonly used items.
Key takeaways from the visit:
- Make sure you read your packages! Some items, like mailers or plastic grocery bags, might have a recycle symbol with additional disposal instructions like store drop-off.
- Pay attention to your plastics. If an item is soft plastic and does not keep its shape after being balled up, it goes in the trash. These can get caught in the machinery at the recycling facility. Ridged plastics are what the machinery can handle.
- Mind your linings. Some drink cartons can go in the recycling bin, but take-out drink cups often have a thin plastic lining that cannot be recycled.
- Compost unlined food-soiled items. Unlined paper plates go into the compost.
- Remember the three rules: Your recyclables should always be empty, dry and loose.