Curbside recycling confusion
If my town’s green team members are confused about what is and isn’t allowed in our curbside co-mingle recycling, it stands to reason that my town’s residents are going to be confused, too. At our meeting last night, we were working on coming up with items to put on two boards – one with items that can go into our curbside recycling and one with items that can’t.
I was surprised to find out what I didn’t know. I didn’t know that cereal boxes (and boxes like them) couldn’t go in because they have a coating on the outside. I’ve been breaking down cereal boxes for years and putting them in. Phone books can be recycled, but the covers need to be ripped off.
Members brought lists of items that their neighbors had asked them about and we all sat around a conference table looking at the instructions from our town’s website about recycling and scratching our heads on some of the items. Aluminum foil?
There were a lot of items that I thought were recyclable that may not be, and that means I’m going to have to rethink some of the items I buy. And I’ve been so pleased that my recycling pile has grown while my trash pile has decreased, but now I know that some of the things I put out to be recycled ended up as trash anyway. I feel like at this point, I should at least have curbside recycling down. It’s frustrating.
Are you clear about the items that your community picks up on recycling day, or are you confused?
If only someone would invent a big machine that could sort your trash out for you at the recycling centre – oh no, wait, they have! I’ve seen it on the TV.
If only local councils would invest in that machine, their recycling rates might increase.
I’m surprised at the cereal boxes and the phone book, though. Surely the phone book cover is just a tougher paper?
When I put something in my curbside recycling bin that wasn’t allowed, the workers just left it there. I’m really glad they didn’t just throw it out and let me obliviously keep “recycling” it. I’m lucky that the town recycling center takes things that curbside recycling doesn’t, like cereal boxes. I know that boxboard is one of those things that not every recycler takes. Maybe you can find a drop-off recycling center in a neighboring town that will take your boxes?