How to Recycle Properly in Your Community

Why Recycle?

It’s a sad fact that a mere 10% of recyclable material gets returned to the system. Instead, our plastic ends up in landfills, rivers, and oceans; burnt; or dumped on third-world countries.

In landfills, it takes centuries to degrade. All the plastic that has ever been created is with us in some form. (Let that sink in.) Plastic in the oceans and waterways harms marine life such as whales and turtles. A plastic island the size of Texas is floating with the currents in the Pacific. Bali and other Southeast-Asian nations must organize regular beach cleanups to pick up all the plastic debris washing up on the beaches. In yet another move that highlights the global disparity between North and South, the US and other Global North countries ship their plastic to poorer developing countries, even if those countries don’t want it.

In short, plastic is a massive problem worldwide. (To get a “day in the life” perspective, check out this video from Germany, considered by many to be the country that recycles the best in the world.)

Recycling in Utah County

Depending on your location within Utah County, your waste management provider may be Republic Services or Waste Management. Mine is Republic Services, and when I looked into it, I was surprised to learn that I had been recycling all wrong.

When you think “recycle,” you think “anything plastic,” but you may also think “glass,” “metal,” and “any type of paper.” Unfortunately, it’s not that simple.

• Republic Services doesn’t take glass. You have to recycle it at other locations in the county. No curbside pickup.
• Not all paper is the same. For example, you would think receipts are recyclable, but they are thermal paper coated with BPA, an industrial chemical used in certain plastics. And those envelopes with the plastic windows? You have to cut the plastic out.
• Republic Services does take metal cans, soda cans, and aluminum foil as long as they’re cleaned of food waste.
• Plastic, though, comes in several varieties, not all of which is recyclable.

Types of Plastic

In 1970, when plastic was beginning to be a big problem, the recycling symbol was born: Three arrows chasing each other in a clockwise direction. Alternatively, the symbols we commonly see on plastic products are called Resin Identification Codes (RIC). In 1987, the Plastics industry was worried that society would shift away from single-use plastics, so they created this RIC system in 1988 to trick people into thinking the plastic was recyclable. Of the seven codes that indicate different plastics, only RIC numbers 1 and 2 are accepted by most curbside recycling programs. The table in the following PDF comes from living without plastic by Brigette Allen and Christine Wong:

Considering that most of this plastic is not recyclable and will end up in landfills, burnt, or in our oceans, the RIC system is a scam to comfort us into thinking we’re doing something good for the planet. Larry Thomas, Society of the Plastics Industry President, said:

If the public thinks that recycling is working, then they’re not going to be as concerned about the environment.

That says it all. What we want to do is throw what we think is recyclable into a bin and forget about it. To recycle properly, however, is more complicated.

Again, you may ask, “Why recycle if only a small percentage gets recycled?”

Because that 10% of the gross tonnage of the plastic problem is a lot of plastic not filling up landfills, being burnt and emitting toxins, or floating in the ocean. That’s a lot of plastic not being foisted on developing countries.

What to Do?

• Reduce our plastic waste as much as possible. When you’re about to buy something plastic, think about the end of life: What happens to this thing when I’m done with it?
• Get as much use out of the plastic you buy so that it’s not single-use. Reuse or upcycle.
• Then recycle.

If you must recycle, learn the rules for recycling in your area. You may be fortunate to have a more developed recycling program than I do, which takes glass, metals, paper, and more than just RIC plastics 1 and 2. If you live in Utah County, then look up the rules for Republic Services and Waste Management. Otherwise, here are general guidelines from Republic Services’ website:

• Keep all recyclables separate and loose in the can (this means you don’t need to collect them in a trash bag).
• If you can poke your finger through the plastic, it doesn’t belong in the container.
• Ensure recyclables are empty, clean, dry.
• Never recycle anything smaller than a credit card.
• Dispose of plastic bags by reusing them, returning to the store, trashing them, or don’t use them at all.
• Separate combined materials before recycling (alas, the dreaded window envelope!).
• If your recycling container stinks, it’s probably contaminated.
• Don’t put your recyclables in a plastic garbage bag!

Conclusion

Of the three primary Rs—Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, recycling should be the last resort. Over time, we should strive to live our lives while producing as little waste as possible. This is a tall order if we live in an area whose systems directly counter that goal. Beyond individual actions, we can pressure our legislative bodies to enact legislation that bans single-use plastics. This would compel the parts of the system (restaurants, food services, etc.) to find sustainable alternatives to the single-use plastic world we live in. Imagine how much plastic we could reduce if single-use plastic was banned!

What has your experience with recycling been in your community?