What you should (and shouldn’t) toss into your recycling bin - WPRI.com

What you should (and shouldn’t) toss into your recycling bin | WPRI.com

AVON, Mass. (WPRI) — Every single day, truckloads of paper, plastic and metal are brought to the Avon Spiegel Recycling Center to be repurposed.

Those trips are much more frequent throughout the holiday season, according to Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection’s Gregg Cooper.

“We generate about 25% more waste during the holidays,” he said. “It’s a significant amount, but the good news is that 80% of it can be put into the recycling bin.”

Waste Management lists three basic rules when it comes to recycling:

- Recycle bottles, cans, paper and cardboard
- Keep food and liquid out of your recycling
- Do not bag recyclables

Cooper said the recyclables that show up at the facility are mechanically sorted by type and baled together before being transported elsewhere to be repurposed.

“Every single part of the material that comes into [the facility] — except for the parts that aren’t asked for — is going to be recycled,” Cooper explained.

He said many materials make it into the facility that shouldn’t.

“We’ve narrowed it down the largest contaminants,” he said, adding that the most problematic contaminants are food waste and plastic bags. “It can bind up the machinery and cause a real problem.”

Those contaminants regularly frustrate Avon Spiegel Recycling Center manager Ed Conley and his staff, who process 400 tons of materials daily.

Conley said materials that aren’t recyclable can get tangled up in the sorting machines and slow down the operation. That’s why Cooper stressed the importance of double checking before tossing an item into your recycling bin.

The following items can be recycled, as long as they’re empty, clean and dry:

- Plastic bottles, jugs, containers and tubs
- Glass bottles, jars and containers
- Tin, aluminum and steel cans
- Paper, newspapers and magazines
- Food and beverage containers
- Flattened cardboard and paperboard

The following items cannot be recycled:

- Plastic shopping bags*
- Plastic wrap and cellophane film
- Flexible packaging, such as snack bags and pouches
- Cups with wax or plastic coatings
- Polystyrene foam and plastic containers
- Ropes, string, wires, hoses and chains
- Clothing and textiles
- Furniture
- Car parts, scrap metal and tires

*Plastic shopping bags can be recycled at most grocery stores, but should never be placed into a recycling bin.

Waste Management also discouraged recycling dirty diapers and medical waste, since both are hazardous and can spoil the materials they’re combined with.

Throughout the holidays, Cooper suggested steering clear of foil, metallic or heavily-laminated wrapping paper. The only type that should be recycled, he said, is regular or glossy wrapping paper.

In addition, Cooper urged against recycling decorative bows, ribbons, foam packaging, cellophane and bubble wrap.

Cooper said recycling is not only good for the environment, but it also cuts down on the amount of waste brought to landfills.

“Recycling really works,” Cooper added. “What you put in that bin does actually get recycled.”

Cooper encouraged residents who are unsure whether an item can be recycled to look it up using the state’s online Recyclopedia.

When asked for advice on how to recycle properly, Cooper suggested “dealing with it right in the moment.”

“After I finish putting a can of tomatoes into my tomato sauce, I give the can a quick rinse and put it into my recycling bin,” Cooper explained. “It’s helpful to address it right when you have it. Otherwise, it can pile up and you’ll forget what should and shouldn’t be recycled.”

Cooper added that he personally keeps a list on his refrigerator of the items that can and can’t be recycled.

“It’s a good reminder to have it always available for you,” he said.