When in Doubt, Throw it Out

This seems like harsh words when you think you’re doing a good thing by recycling everything you possibly can. But Kim Hynes, Executive Director of Central Virginia Waste Management Authority, tells us that even though we have good intentions, we can cause more harm than good. The problem is that one bad item (contaminate) can spoil the whole bin.

What is recycling contamination? There are several ways this can happen. One, it’s when the wrong kind of recyclable item is placed in a bin with other kinds of recyclable items. For example, when a curbside program doesn’t accept No. 6 plastic items, but you throw in a Styrofoam plate without realizing it’s not accepted. It reduces the quality of the other recyclable items. Kim Hynes says, “The value of a ton of single stream would increase at least 15%-20% if there were no contaminants.”

Another common problem is “wishful recycling.” It’s when you set a recyclable plastic bottle next to a trash can at the park because there’s no recycling container nearby. Chances are it will blow away, get flattened, and end up under a bush for someone to pick up later. (*Better to take it home to your own recycling bin than to leave it next to a trash can!) Or if you toss in a piece of plastic packaging into your bin when you can’t find any marks indicating it’s recyclable, but you’re hoping someone on the other end of the line will find a good purpose for it.  While you can sometimes score extra points for effort, not here.  This is a case for, “When in doubt, throw it out.”

Speaking of litter cleanups, be thorough when you’re picking up items from the landscape and off the roadways. A bottle that has liquid left in it needs to be emptied before it’s added to your recycling pickup bag. And if a plastic bottle or aluminum can is muddy, crushed, or seriously deteriorated, it is no longer capable of being recycled into a useful product, and must be added to the trash bag also.

I hope you’re doing your part to recycle items that can be made purposeful again; and I hope that you’re recycling with knowledge and care!  Questions?  Let us know!