Curbside Recycling

I chose Curbside Recycling for the first week of my Tiny Waste Resolution because it takes a significant chunk out of my landfill contribution, but it seems easy enough to implement without making me want to quit within the first week. Most zero wasters claim that recycling should be a last resort, which is understandable since only 9% of plastic actually gets recycled. Hopefully, by the end of the year, even my recycling bins will be low, but in the mean time, I want to make sure I’m not just wishful recycling, which can do more harm than good.

According to the EPA, recycling can be beneficial for multiple reasons:

• Reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators
• Conserves natural resources such as timber, water and minerals
• Increases economic security by tapping a domestic source of materials
• Prevents pollution by reducing the need to collect new raw materials
• Saves energy
• Supports American manufacturing and conserves valuable resources
• Helps create jobs in the recycling and manufacturing industries in the United States

So where do I begin?

Find out my local options

To get started, I searched the internet to see if my area offers a recycling program. Fortunately, it does! A quick search for “Radnor Township recycling” brought me to the city’s trash and refuse web page, where I found a pick up calendar, guidelines and list of acceptable contributions. You can also enter your zipcode at berecycled.org to find recycling options in your area. As of 2019, about half of the country has access to curbside recycling. If your area does not offer a recycling program, why not write a letter requesting one!

Learn what can be recycled

My township has a single stream recycling system, which means all items can be placed in one bin. Items must be loose (not in a plastic bag) and should be placed in a blue or yellow trash can provided by the township.

Recyclable items

• Aluminum Cans - Empty; aerosol, non-aerosol, all-aluminum beverage and food containers, excluding products such as pie pans and aluminum foil
• Bi-Metallic Cans - Empty; aerosol, non-aerosol steel or tin coated steel food and beverage containers
• Clean Paper Products - Newspaper, magazines and periodicals, high-grade office paper, corrugated paper, junk mail, telephone books and paperback books
• Glass - Plain, uncolored, or colored glass bottles, and jars. Expressly excluded from this definition of glass are blue glass, lead crystal, porcelain products, light bulbs, and tempered or plate glass
• High-Grade Office Paper - All white paper, bond paper, and computer paper used in commercial, institutional and Municipal establishments and in residences
• Magazines and Periodicals - Printed matter containing miscellaneous written pieces published at fixed or varying intervals
• Newspaper - paper of the type commonly referred to as newsprint
• Rigid Plastics - Jugs and bottles with recycle symbol # 1%u20147 (check bottom)
• #1 - Polyethylene Terephthalate (PETE) or (PET): soft drink and water bottles, beer bottles, mouthwash bottles, peanut butter and salad dressing containers
• #2 - High Density Polyethylene (HDPE): milk jugs, water and juice containers, liquid detergent bottles, yogurt and margarine tubs
• #3 - Vinyl (Polyvinyl Chloride or PVC): clear food packaging, shampoo bottles
• #4 - Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE): squeezable bottles (e.g. honey, mustard)
• #5 - Polypropylene (PP): ketchup bottles, yogurt containers and margarine tubs, medicine bottles
• #6 - Polystyrene (PS): aspirin bottles, cups, plates (no polystyrene foam products)
• #7 - Other: Use of this code indicates that the package in question is made with a resin other than the 6 listed above, or is made of more than 1 resin used in combination. Plastics such as 3 and 5 gallon reusable water bottles, some citrus juice and ketchup bottles, clear baby food containers

Set up easy to understand recycling bins

Even though my township has single stream recycling, I want to make sure that everyone using my recycling bins understands exactly what can be recycled. Click here to see how I set up my recycling bins.

Stop wishful recycling

The sad thing is, I thought I was already a recycling queen! For the last decade, I’ve been giving myself a pat on the back for every garbage bag of milk cartons and water bottles I brought to the curb over the past decade. Unfortunately, I did the bare minimum and would be willing to guess that the majority of my discard ended up in a landfill. For example, I didn’t really clean anything and I tossed ALL plastic in without checking to see if it was accepted. Sadly, wishful recycling is a pretty major problem here in U.S., but if we continue to educate ourselves and eachother, we can change that.