Ok to leave staples in when recycling paper?

Question

is it ok to leave staples in paper when i throw it into the recycling bin? it wont damage the recycling plant or whatever, will it?

Answer 1

yes

Answer 2

it is fine, when the paper gets ground up and rewetted in to pulp the metal is separated out with filters and magnets.

Answer 3

Last time I went to the landfill they haven't put any thing in it for a long time in fact they uncapped it and recycled stuff in it they are down to about 30 years ago now.  The landfill argument is about 15 - 20 years old and really almost everything you throw away is now reused or sold.  and the new argument where other countries are buying it and ending up in a landfill think about it why buy something to throw it away.  Your paper is shreaded and a magnet is used to pull the metal out.  then it is mixed in with new paper pulp and recycled.  Don't worry about running out of trees once they are cut they have to plant more.

Answer 4

Yep, it's fine... all that paper goes to a landfill anyway.

[edit]  Darn it gink... I was hoping to get a few thumbs down and nuh-uh's before I told them why it goes to a landfill.  Oh well.

Answer 5

I just simply rip off the corner with the staple in. Bin the bit with the staple in, and recycle the bulk of the document.

The same works for those annoying A4 envelopes with clear plastic windows.

Answer 6

If you have ever been in a paper mill, you know that a bit of contaminent can ruin huge rolls of paper, tons of it if they dont catch it.  hopefully their screening process will take it all out, but i like to do my best to take out what I can before then.  Im not going to go crazy picking out every staple, maybe I should be, but you could always email your local recycling center place and ask them about it.  I didnt know they used the stuff for landfill cover, im sure that some of it is recycled, but maybe they use the contaminated stuff for that, it seems like a good idea anyway.  I have heard they grind up glass and use that instead of sand.

Answer 7

i do it all the time

Answer 8

I always do that when I put trash homework in the white recycling bin at school. No one's really said anything about it.

Answer 9

Evil J is right!

Really, they collect it in separate bins and then use it as ADC, Alternative Daily Cover in landfills!

Everyday landfills need to be covered or else they would be a breeding ground for more then just smell so in order to get the daily quota landfills use recycled paper, compost, chipped wood anything that is considered a biofilter to cover the landfill EVERYDAY!!!!!

Answer 10

i don't think so, it's not ok...i think

Answer 11

No its not ok because the  metal dont decompose well.

Answer 12

I think it's ok. I do that too.

Answer 13

I have been recycling for years and never thought about it before; just left the staples in. The literature our council sends us says to include newspapers and magazines in our paper recycling but doesn't mention this so I guess if it was an issue, they would tell us to remove them. I guess there must be some sort of magnet/filter to take these out of the pulp when it is all mashed down. I am sure I read somewhere that any pieces of sellotape are filtered out of the pulp in the process of recycling anyway. At least you are doing your bit. Keep up the good work !