Recycling questions???

Question

I'm fairly new to recycling and sometimes don't know if something can be recycled if it is not marked. Can bread and bun wrappers be recycled? Is it safe to put catalogs with your name and address on them in the bins? Right now, in our town, we cannot recycle glass or tin cans. But any tips on plastics or paper would be welcome.

Answer 1

Take the address label off the magazines before you get rid of them.

Answer 2

I would take the your name and adress off because you never know if someone is "snooping" around. But recycling is a positive alternative. for glass, some cities seperate white and brown glass and recycle both. now if you ever looked under a bottle or item and you see a recycle symbol and a number in it. i think the number represents if it can be recycled and what kind of plastic it is. i would look at the bread bag and check for this. but either way its still plastic made with sulfuric acid right? Most paper can be recycled. recycling centers sumtimes do not like "junk mail" in envelopes because some envelopes have plastic on it. cardboard is the least recycled "paper" but is the one that should be recycled most. for example, if i have papers that have my adress and name, i would rip that paper in half and put half in the trash and put the other half in the recycling bin. Plastic, paper, aluminum cans, glass, tin, metals, copper, clothes, and many more items can be recycled. recycling can also stop littering. its good to get the word out. hope this helps! Have a great day : )

Answer 3

Hi there, firstly, well done you for your efforts I so wish more people cared. I get so excited when some one wants to be greener. (Sad I know!)

Some plastics can be recycled some can't.

As a rough guide, most council will recycle types 1 and 2. You can find out what type it is by looking for a triangle with a number inside it stamped some where on the plastic. The higher the number the tougher it is to recycle and the less likely it is to be accepted. Check with your council though as mine say they will only take plastic bottles.

With bottles you must always remove the lid as these tend to be made of non recyclable plastics.

The best way around the confusion over what can and can't be recycled is to not let much plastic into your home.

For example, refuse to use plastic bags, always carry around your own string or cotton shopping bags and re-use and re-use and re-use these.

When shopping opt for products in recyclable or recycled packaging, or those in as little packaging as possible.  It is important to complete the recycling chain. This way less new materials are used. There is no point recycling if only new material is bought.

For plastics than can't be recycled try using them for something else, like seed trays.

Bio-degradable plastic bags are not as good as they sound. They only degrade with a source of heat and light so won't effectively break down in a landfill. Plus they still leech plastic toxins into the soil and give of emissions while degrading.

As for paper, this can be recycled. Shredded paper is not favoured by councils as it can not be stacked but you can compost it as compost needs a certain amount of dry materials so not to become to soggy. So if you are concerned about your private or personal information, shred it and compost it.

Things like Tetra paks (juice cartons), despite popular believe CAN be recycled; check here for your local plant:

http://www.tetrapakrecycling.co.uk/locat...

Also don’t forget that re-using is just as important as recycling, this way new things don't need to be made.

Can I ask where do you live? Most places have glass and tin recycling, if not done by the council then in supermarket car parks.   Again check with your local council, they should have a website.

If there are no facilities, get together with your friends and neighbours and MAKE your council sort it out.

Sorry for this massively long winded response but I do hope I’ve been a little help.

Bright Blessings x

Answer 4

The best way to find out what you can and can't recycle in your area is to call your local waste management agency and find out.  They will be able to tell you exactly what they can and cannot take.

One thing that I would like to add is:  If they don't say that you can recycle a certain thing, don't put it in the bin with the rest.

For example, most recycling plants can recycle plastic beverage bottles.  These include soda bottles and most milk jugs, and they will have a small recycling symbol with a #1 or #2 on the bottom.  Often, because of the way that plastic is recycled, the recycling people will ask that you only put these bottles in with the recyclables.

However, there are a lot of other products (food trays, detergent jugs, motor oil bottles, etc.) which are also #1 and #2 plastics.  While it may be tempting to put these in with the rest of the recyclables, you shouldn't put them in the bin unless the recycling people say that they can take them.

When such items are added in with the "good" recyclables, it makes it more difficult for the people at the recycling plant to sort through everything.  They have to pull the garbage out, which usually goes to the landfill anyway at the recycling company's expense.  This costs time and money which would be better spent getting the good recyclables out to materials manufacturers to re-enter the system.

The same goes for other types of materials.  Plate glass and pyrex glass are usually not accepted by recyclers because they are made with different types of chemicals.

So keep up the good work and keep the garbage out of the recycling!