Did you know? Food scraps and yard waste currently make up about 30% of all the waste we generate.

But this "waste" doesn't have to be wasted at all. Composting at home is an easy, fun way to generate a natural soil additive that will help your plants grow. It can be tough to grow hearty veggies and beautiful blooms in our Carolina red clay. The dark, crumbly, earthy-smelling compost can improve soil quality and provide vital nutrients to all types of plants.

You can start composting any time of year. We would love to see more backyard composting happening in Greensboro to help reduce waste to landfills and help all of our plant life benefit from what is not waste, but a resource! Here are some additional resources to get you started on your composting journey:

1. Come discover how the City composts yard waste collected from homes! Tours of the White Street Landfill include our large scale composting site too.
2. How to guides for building a backyard or indoor vermicompost system can be found at the NC Cooperative Extension or the EPA.
3. Check out this brochure.

  

Have you ever been told to look for the tiny triangles with little numbers inside to decide if something is recyclable or not? Well hold on tight because that rule no longer applies.

Each year, as we begin to come out of hibernation from winter, local garden and hardware stores get busier and busier with shoppers looking to improve their gardens, lawns, and landscapes. Personally, I have big plans for a little plot in my back yard that involves tomatoes, green beans, squash, pumpkins, and more! Yum.

We have set up a compost bin in our backyard made from reused pallets, and garden fabric (my husband's design, pictured here). For the past year, we have been slowly adding our fruit and veggie food scraps, and some of our lawn trimmings. As this waste breaks down, it creates an extremely nutrient dense, loamy material with beneficial microorganisms that bring life to your soil. Your food scraps are recycled into something that will make your plants stand up and cheer!

Compost isn't called "gardener's gold" for no reason… head to the store and you'll pay a pretty penny to feed your plants. Consider creating your own gardener's gold for next year's garden. It's really easy, compost is very forgiving if you do mess up, and contrary to popular belief, it doesn’t smell or attract unwanted critters. I'm pretty sure my pets have no idea that the compost bin contains former food scraps.

If you are interested in learning more about creating your own backyard compost, check out our "Beginner's Guide to Backyard Composting". Are you interested in taking a backyard composting class? Let us know if you’re interested with a comment below, and we will be sure to update Nextdoor (and Facebook) if a class is scheduled in the future.

If you don't have time to create your own backyard compost for this year's garden, never fear! At the White Street Landfill complex, all of the yard waste collected by City crews is composted using large scale industrial equipment throughout the year. If you would like to purchase compost or mulch, it only costs $20 per truckload or ton, and leaf mulch is free. For details about compost and mulch at White Street, please visit our compost and mulch webpage.

Please do not mix food waste in with your yard waste collection. Currently, there are no plans to begin a curbside pick-up program for food waste in Greensboro.

 

Ever Wonder… how clean does my recycling need to be? Have someone in your family that thinks it needs to be spotless? Well now the debate is over.

Plastic is virtually unavoidable in today’s society. Despite its environmental unpopularity, plastic remains one of the number one products found in our everyday lives. Beverages, laundry detergent, shampoo, ketchup, cleaning products, and even reusable beverage containers can all be made from plastic.

So… if plastic is unavoidable (without deliberate effort), why make the effort to recycle it? Because it keeps it out of the landfill and it creates jobs. Check out this cool video: https://youtu.be/WxgG3-0jpAI

In the Carolina's, 3,500 people depend on you recycling your plastic bottles and jugs to go to work every day. Yet over 70% of all plastic bottles are thrown away. It’s vital that more plastic bottles be recycled. Companies right here in the Carolina's who make new products from plastic bottles CAN’T find enough recycled plastic to run their plants efficiently.

A wide variety of objects can be made from recycled plastics. 

1. When laundry detergent, shampoo, and milk containers are recycled, they can make new bottles and containers, plastic lumber, picnic tables, lawn furniture, playground equipment, recycling bins and more.
2. When plastic water, ketchup, mayo, and hand soap bottles are recycled, they can be made into t-shirts, sweaters, fleece jackets, insulation for jackets and sleeping bags, carpeting and more bottles. It takes about 10 bottles to create enough plastic fiber to make a cool new t-shirt, 63 bottles to make a sweater, 14 bottles to create enough insulation (fiberfill) for a ski jacket, and 114 bottles to make enough insulation (fiberfill) for a sleeping bag!
3. Even though they’re made with a different type of plastic than the bottles, the caps should be put back on bottles before you toss them in recycling bins. What can they become? Plastic bottle caps can be recycled into batteries for your car, garden rakes, storage containers, reusable shopping bags, yarn, ropes, brooms… and more bottle caps.

How can you do your part?

Rinse. Recap. Recycle.

Look around your home (and not JUST in your kitchen), in your car, at your office, and everywhere you go for plastic bottle and jugs to recycle. Make it your mission to ALWAYS recycle bottles and jugs that you personally use, and encourage family and friends to do the same. The simple act of recycling plastic bottles creates well-paying jobs, and companies that have a good supply of recycled bottles will continue to invest and expand their businesses in North and South Carolina.

You can also help by telling others. Share the information in these posts via social media, e-mail, and personal conversations. Every voice helps spread the importance of recycling and it's positive impact on not only our environment, but our economy. And since money talks, try to buy items with recycled products in them as often as possible. You’re helping your neighbors! #YourBottleMeansJobs 

Whether you’re a grab-and-go, brown-bagger, or a meal-prepper you may want to update your habits.  Let's go over the basics.

Use a reusable lunch box not a disposable one. It doesn't have to be fancy, it can be a reusable grocery bag or a durable one with insulation. Have the kids be responsible for putting ice packs in the freezer.

Pour beverages into reusable containers. Get a durable, easy to clean, reusable bottle for under $20. A quick container comparison of orange juice shows a small price difference, but a huge difference in the amount of waste. A 6-pack of juice has six bottles with caps and tamper evident seals, as well as plastic packaging which isn't recyclable in your home bins (take it back to the grocery store with plastic grocery bags). The reusable bottle is simply the bottle and cap which can be used over and over again. It takes about a month to recoup the cost of the reusable container and just think of all the waste you’ve reduced! 

If you must buy convenience packs, avoid materials like pouch drinks that are landfill bound.  Don’t forget about hot beverages and invest in a thermos. It can double as a tea mug or a bowl for soup. 

Avoid single-serve and heavily packaged items.  Refill small containers from larger ones. Buy bulk nuts or dried fruit to make trail mix in the portion size you want! Buy ingredients for several lunches at once. You'll use less packaging buying larger quantities of basic ingredients than buying prepared meals.

Use reusable food containers, not Ziploc bags or plastic wrap. The average person uses 500 Ziploc’s a year and that's a lot of waste! Use reusable sandwich bags or bee’s wax paper for snacks. For yogurt, use a reusable screw top plastic container or a Mason jar.

Pack a REAL fork, knife and spoon!  Visit thrift stores to find sets, so you don’t break up your home set and switch them out immediately. If I’m given a plastic utensil, I wash and reuse it until it breaks.  

Pack leftovers into readymade meals. Prepare a meal when you put up leftovers, this saves time too! Use a stainless steel container in your car to pack leftovers in from a dinner out. Voila, lunch is made!

Pack fabric napkins or bandannas instead of paper napkins or towels. Throw them in with normal laundry loads! 

Buy or grow naturally packaged items. Food can come in its own packaging - why smother it in plastic?

Buy local or grow your own. Choose food that hasn't traveled far - this reduces packaging and fuel cost.

Eat less meat. It takes more energy and resources to produce. Skip a few days - it can make a difference.

Pack what you need. Don't spend extra and waste more on single serve items from the vending machine.

Have you ever wondered if recycling is really worth the effort? I have personally had residents ask whether their recyclables were just going to get dumped into a landfill. Let's clear up a few questions…

1. Why do I see recycling trucks picking up my trash?
   All of our trucks have the same graphic designs on the side--recycling is something that we want everyone to think about, so we put our pretty graphics on all of our trucks. There are designated trash and recycling trucks that pick up only trash or only recycling.
2. I saw a truck pick up both the trash and recycling from the same house. WHY?
   Typically this is because there is something non-recyclable sticking out of the recycling cart such as carpet, blinds, bedding, or yard waste. Contamination like this can be harmful to the machinery and workers at the recycling facility. For this reason, the carts are skipped by the recycling truck, tagged, and the garbage drivers pick them up.
3. Doesn't recycling just go to the landfill anyway? I've heard you sort through the trash for recycling, so why should I put forth the effort to separate recycling?

The City provides (and your tax dollars pay for) two truck routes with distinctly separate destinations. Unfortunately, any recyclable materials that you put in the trash are picked up by our garbage trucks, taken directly to a transfer station, placed into a tractor-trailer, and taken straight to a landfill. The time, effort, and money it would cost to hand sort the recyclables out of your garbage would be an inefficient use of your tax dollars--especially when you can sort at home! All materials you put in the recycling cart are taken directly to the recycling facility.

Recycling conserves resources, reduces waste to landfills, and creates jobs in the Carolinas. Greensboro is committed to making our community a great place to live, work, and play. Recycling is just one of the great ways that we can all work together to make our home a cleaner, safer, and more beautiful place. You may not feel like what you do as an individual makes a big difference--like you’re just a drop in the ocean. But if we all make small changes, those individual drops can make huge waves of change by sharing knowledge, encouraging others to recycle, and recycling every day of the year.

Have you heard of Plastic Free July?

Take the July (or any month!) challenge and choose to refuse single-use plastic during July - and beyond!

1. The problem: we all use plastic bottles, bags, utensils, and takeaway containers, but these plastics are designed to last forever.
2. The goal: to raise awareness of the problems with single-use disposable plastic and challenge you to change something you actually have control over. Join millions of people from 159 countries worldwide in making a difference together!
3. Join now online and choose to refuse!

Why are single use plastics a problem? Well, simply put, plastics don’t break down. They become permanent pollution in the environment, and can be ingested by wildlife. They are mostly downcycled, which means they are made into low-grade products or they’re sent to landfills to take up space forever. Since the U.S. has 3,091 active landfills, what’s the big deal? Every year the average American throws away approximately 185 pounds of plastic and we toss an immense 2.12 billion tons of waste.  If our throwaway culture continues, we’ll eventually run out of landfill space.

Single-use plastics are also known to be escape artists - they blow out of bins, trucks, or away from events, and become accidental litter! That means those items you threw away could easily end up downstream in our waterways and oceans. At this rate, there will be more tons of plastic in the ocean than fish by 2050.

And plastic can transfer into the food chain, carrying pollutants with it. The bottom line is that by using single use plastic, you are increasing your eco-footprint because plastic manufacturing consumes about 6% of the world’s fossil fuels.

Feel like you’re already making a difference? A lot of us are, more than 60% of us are already refusing plastic bags, avoiding pre-packaged fruit and veggies, and avoiding buying bottled water! Here are a few more ways to swap disposables for alternatives to plastic:

• Doggy doo bags --> Folded up newspaper
• Toiletries --> Shampoo and Conditioner Bars (Yes they do exist!)
• Toilet paper --> Look for toilet paper wrapped in paper and then use the wrap for your pup’s poo
• Fabric softener --> Add one cup of white vinegar during the rinse cycle
• Plastic Wrap --> Beeswax paper!

To read more about going plastic-free, checkout My PLASTIC Free Life. 

It may seem hard to reduce plastic use, but try to challenge yourself to take a few small steps. Here’s a good guide to get started. 

By making the choice today to be a part of the solution, you can reduce your plastic use, refuse plastics like straws, takeaway cups, utensils, balloons etc. and always recycle what you can!

Most disposable plastic items are not recyclable in your brown bins. Use the Waste Wizard in GSO Collects to search if an item should be trashed, recycled, or disposed of another way! Search GSO Collects in the App Store, or find it online.

Happy Plastic Free July!

I often hear from residents that they recycle EVERYTHING they can. But here is a question for you… do you recycle EVERYWHERE you can?

If we're honest, most of us have had times where we've put a recyclable bottle or can in the garbage. It's harder to recycle when it's inconvenient. Consider this:

What if you’re out and you only see a trash can around? How long are you willing to hold on to that bottle before you give up and just throw it in the garbage? Ever been to a sports event, concert, or park and not seen recycling containers? It can be really frustrating to feel like you only have the choice to throw something in the garbage, but you do have the choice to take that bottle with you to recycle later.

Oftentimes, residents think of the kitchen when they think of recyclable items. It’s easy enough to remember that your pizza box, milk jug, and soup can should all go in your recycling container. But what about the other items in your home that are recyclable? Today we shine a light on other places you might find recycling in your home.

In the bathroom, it can be tempting to put toilet paper tubes, shampoo bottles, and the plastic wrap around toilet paper (can be recycled at the grocery store) in the trash can. Consider having a small recycling bin in your bathroom along with your trash can (twin the bin!) to make it easy to separate your tissues, make-up wipes, and cotton swab trash from the jugs and recyclable paper products in your bathroom.

Have a home office, craft room, shed, or man cave? All of those rooms may contain recyclables that don’t belong in your green garbage cart. These rooms are ideal places for a small recycling bin. Put paper, magazines, mail, and envelopes in the recycling!

Have a question about whether an item in your house is recyclable? Try using our mobile app, GSO Collects.

Recycling isn't always convenient, but it makes a big difference if we all make small simple changes to increase our recycling efforts!

 Make sure to return the following items to retail locations, like grocery stores, for recycling!

Recently, there has been quite a bit of media buzz regarding single-use plastics. The European Union has proposed new legislation regarding cutlery, straws, the plastic tube used in some cotton swabs, and seven other items that make up 70% of litter in our oceans. Not only is the EU planning to ban these items, but companies that create them will bear the cost of their clean-up from oceans and beaches. 

That's all well and good for the EU, but unfortunately the U.S. is not there yet. So what can you do in the meantime? The truth is, anything that is smaller than approximately 2in x 2in is going to fall through the cracks of the sorting machinery and are destined for the landfill because it is too small to sort from other materials.

So what kinds of things have we seen fall through the cracks? A LOT of stuff.

Here are just a few that cannot be recycled at all:

• Eating utensils and straws (low quality plastic)
• Pens, pencils, markers (multi-material items)
• Toys (low quality or unknown type of plastic)
• Small tubes or compacts for makeup (non-recyclable/multi-material items)
• Toothbrushes and toothpaste tubes (multi-material items)
• Chicken wings, lemon wedges, and other food products (again, gross)
• Plastic applicators of feminine products (yes really, it's gross, PLEASE don’t recycle these)

Here are a few things that we see that should be recycled at the HHW drop-off location.

• Lightbulbs (multi-material items)
• Batteries (fire hazard--dangerous for recycling staff)
• Nail polish (also a fire hazard!)

Basically any item that is about yogurt-cup-sized or smaller will end up in the glass pile and go to the landfill. These items are recyclable, but have a good chance of ending up in the glass pile if not properly prepared:

• Plastic caps
• Plastic tamper evident rings

Make sure to reattach plastic caps securely to their plastic bottles before recycling them.

Thank you for trying to recycle all you can, but please rethink your recycling mantra and remember: When in Doubt, Throw it Out! Or look up the answer for yourself on our app's Waste Wizard. Download GSO Collects from the App Store, or use the online tool here.

 

  

 

  

 

Have you ever held up a cord or hose and thought to yourself "this is made of plastic… so, do I recycle it, trash it, or take it somewhere special?"

"Tanglers" are a group of items that can damage recycling machinery. Any item that is put in the recycling container that isn't recyclable is called a contaminant. Ropes, wires, hoses, cords, clothes, plastic and cloth sheets, tarps, wire hangers, and plastic bags wrap around our rotating machine parts and not only decrease their ability to sort recycling, but can also break expensive equipment.

Folks that work at the Recycling Center must climb into these machines and cut out anything that has gotten tangled by hand--not a super safe task. By separating out objects that cannot hold their shape, you are making safer work environments for lots of people in the recycling industry. If you are unsure if something is a tangler or not, please put it in the landfill-bound bin (or reach out to me and I will help).

In summary, make sure that you are landfilling potentially harmful items instead of recycling them. Check out our recycling guide (see picture) for examples of what should and should not be recycled. 

  

Greensboro now offers recycling drop-off sites at the White Street Landfill and Solid Waste Transfer Station for paper, cardboard, metal, plastic and glass. The drop-off sites are for residents who have too much recycling for their regular residential containers. This service is free for City of Greensboro residents and $10 for non-residents.

Proof of residency is required (such as a water bill). When you arrive, proceed to the scale house window for unloading instructions.

Locations and Hours

• White Street Landfill, 2503 White St.

  Hours: Mondays through Fridays from 7:50 am to 4:50 pm; Saturdays from 7 am to 1 pm

• Transfer Station, 6310 Burnt Poplar Rd.
  Hours: Mondays through Fridays from 6 am to 6 pm; Saturdays from 7 am to 1 pm

The City also offers seven other locations for recycling glass only.

 Visit this webpage for more information on changes to Greensboro recycling. Stay up-to-date on the latest solid waste new by downloading the GSO Collects mobile app or using the online tool.

I often get asked why Greensboro doesn't service recycling carts as often as trash carts. Yes, we used to have weekly recycling collection, but in 2008 we made the switch to Every Other Week (EOW) recycling.

This may sound counterproductive, because we want everyone to recycle all they can. The State of NC Recycling Program did a study and found that each household generates about 850 pounds of recyclables each year. However, only about half of that amount is being recycled properly. The other half of the potential recyclables from most homes is being landfilled.

Before switching to EOW recycling, about 30% of homes in Greensboro were putting out their recycling cans each collection day. That meant we were driving by 7 out of 10 homes every single week without stopping to pick up their recycling. We were also picking up 29,600 tons each year. That translates to about 569 tons a week. It cost us about $3.9 million to collect recycling in ‘06-‘07.

After we made the switch to EOW recycling, our participation rate doubled to 60% of homes setting their recycling carts out each collection day. In ’07-’08 when we switched, we picked up 29,700 tons--about 570 tons a week. The number of houses recycling doubled, the average tons collected each week stayed relatively the same, and the cost of collecting recyclables dropped to $3.3 million that year.

 
Across the City, we are still seeing tonnage that is too low to warrant picking up recycling every week. If you want to see every week recycling, two things need to happen: more and better recycling.

More Recycling: 
I understand that you and your neighbors are frustrated about not having enough room in one recycling container to hold all your recycling. You have the option of requesting a second recycling container for your home if you have too much recycling to last you two weeks between pickups. You can do so through our new GSO Collects App, available on the app store (no waiting on the phone)! Or you can call 336-373-CITY (2489). 

Better Recycling:
Currently, about 20% of the stuff that goes to our recycling center is actually trash (aka contamination). The national contamination rate is averaging about 5-10% trash in the recycling. Please, when in doubt, throw it out, if you're not sure if something is recyclable. If you want to find out, use our Waste Wizard search engine in the GSO Collects app to search virtually any item and find out how to dispose of it properly. If something is not in the search engine, you can report it as missing and we will add it to our database! The GSO Collects Waste Wizard and reporting tools are also located on our website. 

Recycling correctly is just as important as increasing recycling. Trash in the recycling can be detrimental to the process because it can cause recyclable items to be too dirty to be recycled. Also, employees at the recycling center could be injured by some items in your recycling. Please make sure that you recycle better before you recycle more. Know where to throw!

Download and print the contamination poster. 

Have you ever wondered about plastic bottle caps? Or had a question about whether they're recyclable? Should they go in the trash? 

Here's your answer: 

Ever Wonder… is this paper supposed to be recycled? Read more to find out about mail, boxes, books, and shredded paper.

1. Do I need to remove the plastic windows on envelopes? What about the plastic around the opening of tissue boxes?
   No, those are fine to leave on your envelopes and tissue boxes. That small amount of plastic is not detrimental to paper mill processing. If anything has a plastic wrapping around it (several boxes of tissues, paper towels, etc), that should be removed and recycled at the grocery store. Break boxes down to save space in your recycling cart!
   
   
2. Is glossy paper ok, like magazines?
   Yes! We want your magazines, but not the plastic sleeves they sometimes come in. Photo paper cannot be recycled at this time.
   
   
3. Do I need to bundle or bag my paper products?
   No, everything should be loose in the bin. No bagging or bundling since it can damage equipment at the recycling center.
   
   
4. Are books recyclable?
   Paperback books are recyclable as is. Hardback books need to have the hardback covers removed and landfilled. (Please exhaust all other efforts to donate books before recycling!)
   
   
5. What about shredded paper… should that be put in the bin loose too?
   Shredded paper is no longer recyclable in Greensboro. It is very difficult to capture, usually contaminates other recycling, and also gets very dirty, making it unrecyclable. To best dispose of sensitive documents, bring them to one of our shredding events. Shred trucks allow you to watch your documents be shredded, then are funneled directly into recycling streams to create more high quality paper! Check the GSO Collects app for upcoming Recycle Rodeos.  

We always get asked about where to put plastic bags. They should never be put in your residential recycling container and here's why.

Plastic bags, film, and wrap should never be mixed in with your recycling because it tangles around machinery at the recycling processing facility. There are a lot of rotating machines that work hard to separate your paper/cardboard products from objects like bottles and jugs.

When flimsy materials like plastic bags go through these machines, they cause a great big tangle. Folks that work at the Recycling Center must stop the machines, climb into them and cut out anything that has gotten tangled by hand--not a super safe task. By separating out objects that don't hold their shape, you make safer work environments for people in the recycling industry.

When your plastic bags, film, and wrap are recycled at the grocery store, they go to a different recycling facility that only makes one thing: plastic decking material. See the attached pictures for a look at the problems, solutions, and what plastic film can be made into!

Have you ever wondered what happens to glass when it's recycled at our Glass Recycling Drop-off sites?

It’s no secret we humans produce way too much garbage. Case in point: the plastic 6-pack ring. These were developed in the 1960’s to conveniently carry canned drinks, and within 10 years, completely replaced paper and metal based holders. The plastic rings caused many environmental issues from being ingested by animals to being wrapped around their necks or wings.

Today’s plastic 6-pack rings have improved since the original - many are now made with LDPE photodegradable plastic, free of heavy metals or toxic additives. While these rings degrade more quickly than the old rings did, they remain problematic because the plastic still gets eaten by animals.  

If you have any 6-pack rings, you’re probably wondering if they’re recyclable. In Greensboro, the answer is NO. The rings act as “tanglers”, and get stuck in recycling machinery. Since they’re flat, they are treated as paper in the assembly line, thus contaminating the paper pile. Plastic rings are also NOT recyclable in the recycling programs at local grocery stores. Did you know that the following items can be recycled at local grocery stores (clean and dry please): 

• Any plastic retail bags, including produce, bread, and dry cleaning bags
• Zip-top food storage bags
• Plastic wrap on cases of water/soda bottles, paper products, and diapers
• Furniture and electronic wrap
• Plastic cereal box liners (but if it tears like paper, do not include)
• Any plastic bag or film packaging that has the How2Recycle label on it

 
The following items cannot be recycled at local grocery stores:

• Degradable/compostable bags or film packaging
• Pre-washed salad bags
• Frozen food bags
• Candy bar wrappers
• Chip bags
• Six-pack rings

Check out Plastic Film Recycling to learn more about what can and can’t be recycled at your local store.

You might wonder… "Batteries are made of metal… does that make them recyclable in my bin at home? Why am I supposed to take them to the Household Hazardous Waste drop-off site? What happens if batteries are put in the bins at home?"

All batteries--rechargeable and non-rechargeable--should be taken to the Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Center for disposal. Alkaline batteries (non-rechargeable) have no recycling value. Since they have hazardous chemicals inside, it is EXTREMELY important that they be taken to the HHW drop-off location to be disposed of in a special landfill.

All other batteries that are rechargeable, like AA, AAA, 9V, power tools, etc DO get recycled. The metals inside and the plastic exterior both have good markets for recycling. Because of this, it is even more important that these batteries get recycled at the HHW location and not placed in curbside recycling or landfill-bound bins. 

On a very serious note, at our recycling and transfer station (landfill waste) we have had battery-ignited fires - see attached image. The batteries were crushed under the weight of waste or equipment, leaked dangerous chemicals, and started fires among the paper and cardboard fuel. Our teams are trained to look out for fires and extinguish them, and we love our Greensboro firefighters! Thankfully we have had no injuries or major damage at either the recycling center or transfer station—BUT these situations can turn very dangerous very quickly. PLEASE share with others the importance of proper battery disposal. Safety is our number one priority and your actions can make a big difference!

To properly dispose of batteries, taken them to the Household Hazardous Waste drop-off site. You do not need to separate the rechargeable from the non-rechargeable batteries--they'll take care of that. This location is free to all Guilford County residents (you may need to show your license to prove you reside in Guilford County). Household waste only, no businesses please (e-mail us if you need assistance with hazardous business waste disposal).  

 

Products carry confusing labels like “degradable,” “biodegradable,” “photodegradable,” “landfill degradable,” and “compostable.” But these labels can add to the confusion – is biodegradable better than degradable? How is an average consumer to know?

The bottom line is that none of the products with these labels are recyclable in Greensboro’s program. “Compostable” and “biodegradable” do not mean recyclable. Compostable plastic undergoes biological decomposition in an industrial compost site, but not in home composting systems.

Three criteria need to be met to call it compostable:

• Biodegrade - breaks down into carbon dioxide, water, and biomass at the same rate as paper
• Disintegrate - the material is indistinguishable in the compost
• Eco-toxicity - the biodegradation does not produce any toxic material and the compost can support plant growth

Biodegradable plastics “degrade by microorganism’s in the environment over time.” They break down into water, carbon dioxide (CO2) and some bio-material. It's important to note that the temperature and humidity must be just right for these items to break down fully. Biodegradables are often composed of bio-plastics, which are made from renewable raw or all-natural plant materials: corn oil, orange peels, starch, and plants. Typically the raw materials are melted and poured into molds of various shapes such as water bottles, food packaging, agriculture films, medical sutures, and utensils.

Biodegradable plastics don’t decompose unless disposed of properly, meaning they must be treated similarly to compost. The natural breakdown of the plastic will NOT occur if tossed in a landfill. There is also a slightly higher cost to produce biodegradable plastics. It’s still a matter of debate if these biodegradable plastics will someday replace traditional plastics.

Remember, never put any of these types of “plastics” in with your recyclables! Even small amounts of these plastics can contaminate an entire processing batch.

Not only are they not recyclable, most plastic packaging that claims to be “biodegradable” or “compostable” will only partially break down under the conditions typical in most residential composts. Contrary to most consumers’ understanding, most “biodegradable” bioplastics don’t break down in compost facilities and therefore end up in a landfill, taking up space for thousands of years. So when buying products, look for the BPI label, make sure the item has been labeled compostable, meaning it’s guaranteed to meet compost facility standards and will break down within 180 days.

The best option when it comes to any type of plastic, is to go with reusable instead of disposable – a reusable item is always a better choice than a disposable one.

You can always use the Waste Wizard in GSO Collects if you aren’t sure whether an item should be landfilled, recycled, or disposed of another way! Find GSO Collects online or find it in the App Store.

Voting is a civic right, duty, and honor. As election season comes to an end each year, you might wonder how to properly dispose of yard signs. We have your answers.

The plastic portion of yard signs are not recyclable for two reasons: they are flat and will end up in the paper bales, and the type of plastic they are made of is not recyclable. Please put those in the trash.

Any wire or wooden stakes are also not recyclable. Wire can very easily become a tangler around machinery which can cause a lot of damage, or it could potentially injure someone at the recycling center. If you would like that metal to be recycled, please take it to a local scrap metal facility for recycling. Wood is also not recyclable in your recycling bin. Please put any wooden stakes in your trash container, or repurpose them for other uses.

Do you have any ideas for repurposing old yard signs? Share those with us @GSOGoesGreen on Facebook and Twitter. 

Any item that is put in the recycling container that isn't recyclable is called a contaminant.  Contaminants can range from food to dishes, needles, and diapers. Today’s Ever Wonder Wednesday will take a closer look at one example of a contaminant that we often find in recycling containers. 

Ceramics and glassware are not recyclable. Ceramics cannot be made into anything new with our current recycling technology. Glassware (plates, cups, vases, etc.) melt at different temperatures. This means that dishware glass acts as an impurity in the recycling process. Be sure to place both ceramics and glassware in your landfill bound bins, or consider donating if they are still usable. Please help us spread the word that they don't belong in recycling bins.

Make sure that you are landfilling potentially harmful items instead of recycling them. Check out our recycling guide for examples of what should and should not be recycled. 

What is it? 
Polystyrene, or Styrofoam, is a petroleum-based plastic made from styrene monomers. It has excellent insulation properties, is light-weight, and 95% air. Styrofoam is commonly used in product packaging and the food industry. But every day, almost 1,400 tons of foam is buried in U.S. landfills. Plastic doesn’t decompose, it just breaks into smaller pieces, so it can affect people, animals, and our entire ecosystem. This is why it’s on the top 10 list of garbage found in our waterways.

Can it be Recycled?
The City’s recycling program does not accept Styrofoam. While it is recyclable in some other areas, Greensboro doesn’t have any plans to recycle it. Styrofoam and other foam products should never be put in your recycling container, and if in doubt, throw it out. Use the Waste Wizard in GSO Collects to find out what goes where! Find GSO Collects online at www.greensboro-nc.gov/collects or in the App Store.

You can recycle foam products at the DART facility in Randleman NC. Visit this site to find out how. They accept foam with the resin number 6. Straws, lids, foam insulation and packing peanuts are not recyclable.

Clothes hangers are typically made from three different materials or a combination of plastic, metal, and wood.

Regardless of the type of hanger, they don’t belong in your recycling bin. Metal and wood hangers can jam and damage the machines at the recycling facility, causing dangerous situations for the employees there. Plastic hangers (which are often a plastic/metal combo) can break, fall through the machinery, and end up contaminating other recyclables.

When it comes to hangers, reducing and reusing are your best options. Leave the plastic hangers at the store when you buy new clothes. Purchase sturdy, durable hangers that are unlikely to break so you can use them for a lifetime.

Another option is to sell your metal hangers to a local metal recycler if you no longer need them or they are damaged (a quick Google search will yield several local metal recyclers). Undamaged hangers can be donated to your local thrift store. Damaged non-metal hangers must, unfortunately, go to the landfill. Even damaged wood hangers must go to the landfill because they are coated in a varnish that makes them non-compostable.

It may be obvious to most of you that insecticides, herbicides, and other pesticides or garden chemicals do not belong in your recycling bin. You may even know that they don’t belong in your trash bin either. So where should they go?

Pesticides should be taken to the Household Hazardous Waste Center located at 2750 Patterson Street. These chemicals should not go to the landfill because many pesticides are flammable. If these chemicals get into the natural environment, they can pollute waterways and harm plants and animals. In fact, pesticides are created to harm plants and animals, so it's critical that we keep them out of the environment!

Putting these chemicals in your recycling poses the same fire hazard as putting them into your trash bin. If the pesticides were to leak out in the truck on the way to the recycling center, they could ruin an entire truckload (between 3-5 tons) of recyclables!

Empty pesticide containers are different. If you have empty and dry plastic containers that once held pesticides, these can go into your recycling bin. If you purchase dry pesticides that come in bags, these go into your trash bin as long as they are empty. If you are trying to discard a partially full bag of pesticides, take them to the Household Hazardous Waste Center.

Pesticides are created to harm plants and animals, and they do just that. In an effort to reduce pesticide use and reduce your waste, consider alternative methods of pest control. One common (and effective) method is crop rotation. Even if you have a small flower or vegetable garden, simply switching up what you grow every few years can reduce pest infestation, and improve your soil quality!

There are many other ways to control pests that don’t use chemicals so harmful that they require special disposal at the Household Hazardous Waste site. Be sure to do your research this gardening season to find a method that could work best for you!

We all appreciate the convenience and variety that single-use coffee pods like K-cups bring. But what happens after you enjoy that cup of piping-hot deliciousness? Can it be recycled or does it need to be landfilled?

The quick answer is to landfill the k-cup and other single-use coffee pods. The first reason is that they are too small to be sorted by the machines at the recycling center. The second reason is that they consist of three different types of materials: plastic, paper, and organic material (coffee/tea grounds). So even if the k-cup was large enough to be sorted by our machines, they still couldn’t be recycled. 

The best option would be to avoid single-use coffee pods. That doesn’t mean you have to give up on a perfectly portioned single cup of coffee! There are reusable single-serve coffee pod options. They are refillable at home with any coffee/tea grounds that you like. Once you’ve used it, you can compost the used coffee/tea grounds, wash your pod, and reuse it over and over again!

If you’re absolutely hooked on the single-use coffee pods, there is a tool you can purchase to separate out the three different materials (a quick google search should yield results). The coffee/tea grounds and paper filter can be composted, but the plastic cups and foil lids still needs to be landfilled.

The process of separating out single-use coffee pods is a tedious one that takes away the convenience factor of a single-use coffee pod in the first place. Consider ditching the single-use pod for a reusable one, or switch back to the old-fashioned coffee pot instead!

Light bulbs - once they are burnt out, what do you do with them? Read more for this week's recycling tip:

When properly disposed of at the Household Hazardous Waste Center, ALL light bulbs, including those with and without mercury are 100% recyclable! The various components are broken apart and made into a variety of new items.

• Glass is recycled into new glass items
• Aluminum end caps are recycled into other aluminum products
• Phosphor powder (a component of fluorescent bulbs) is cleaned and returned back into light tubes 
• Wire goes to metal recycling facilities
• Mercury is purified in a high temperature oven and recycled as metallic mercury

Light bulbs that end up in the landfill do not break down over time. Their valuable (and sometimes toxic) components will remain in landfills for the foreseeable future as is. Make sure you do your part and recycle your light bulbs at EcoFlo Inc. 

Used needles and other sharps… believe it or not, these are things we see far too often at our recycling center. Part of our recycling process includes hand sorting of items. While our employees wear personal protective equipment, including puncture resistant gloves, they can't always protect against tiny needles. Needles can injure people and spread infections that cause serious health conditions.

Never place loose needles and other sharps in household or public trash cans or recycling bins, and never flush them down the toilet. These acts put sanitation workers, janitors, housekeepers, household members, and children at risk of being harmed.

Safe ways to dispose of your sharps 

Home Disposal

In NC, it is currently legal to dispose of home injection needles by  putting them in a plastic laundry bottle. This also includes syringes, vials, and other injection-related materials you might use for self-injections. Please follow these directions: 

Never place loose needles and syringes in the trash or recycling! 

• Label container “Do Not Recycle.” 
• Put sharps in point-first. 
• Containers more than half-full should be disposed of. 
• Store sharps in closed container with the cap screwed on.
• Place in your trash can ONLY.

Mail-back Programs 

Mail-back disposal programs allow home sharps users to mail used sharps to licensed disposal facilities as a safe disposal option. These programs charge a fee for the service. Check with your healthcare provider or pharmacist, or search the yellow pages or Internet using key words “sharps mail-back.”

Needle Destruction Devices (that bend, break, incinerate, or shear needles) 

-A device that incinerates needles and lancets can be used at home to destroy needles immediately after use. These small, portable devices use a few seconds of high heat to melt needles and reduce them to BB-size balls. Previously used only in healthcare facilities, these devices are now available in smaller, less expensive models for home use. 

-A needle cutter or clipper automatically stores cut needles in a small refuse reservoir. Once the sharp is destroyed by heat or cutting, you can place the remains in a sealed container, such as a detergent bottle and place it in your household trash (not recycling).

Syringe Exchange Programs (SEP)

Sharps users can safely exchange used needles for new needles. Contact the North American Syringe Exchange Network at 253-272-4857. 

Break the plastic straw habit during November...and beyond!

You've probably been hearing about plastic straws in the media recently. Americans use lots of plastic straws, but they aren’t recyclable and often end up as wind-blown litter. It may seem like plastic straws are a small part of our daily lives, but combined with plastic forks, knives, spoons and take-out containers, they create many issues for our local and global community. While saying “no thanks” to plastic straws may seem like it won’t make a difference, when we work together, all of our small, individual changes add up to huge waves of change.

Plastic straws are the fifth most common item found in coastal litter internationally. Due to their size and shape, recycling centers are unable to sort them out from other recyclables, so straws in the recycling bin end up in the landfill. The low quality plastic that straws are made of also make them non-recyclable.  If you are unsure about whether an item is recyclable, visit the Waste Wizard online to find out what goes where and #RecycleRight!

These are just a few reasons why Field Operations and Water Resources have teamed up to bring No Straw November to Greensboro. If you would like to learn more about how individuals, bars, restaurants, businesses, and others can get involved, please visit the #NoStrawNovember website. You can also see which establishments are already saying “no” to plastic straws.

Get involved and help spread the word!
Download “Please serve straws upon request” cards and let your favorite establishment know you don’t need a straw. 

With the advent of social media, digital picture frames, and a million other ways that we can digitally keep photos, printed photos are becoming less and less prevalent. Yes, ALL of our family and friends can check out those goofy kid pictures for… well, ever. Plus, you can keep taking pictures until you get just the right shot, with no closed eyes or weird expressions (unless you're my family). But you might still have stacks of printed photos that you may or may not want to hang on to.

If you were to search "photo" or "picture" in the GSO Collects Waste Wizard, you find that photos are not recyclable. Yes, they are printed on paper, but the layers of sheen that make you nostalgic for that long-ago vacation, mommy-daughter outfit or powder blue prom tux choice, make it impossible to separate from other materials.

So whether you've got your teenage glamour shots, awkward family photos, or simply the 43 shots of grandpa's thumb… make sure you dispose of them in the garbage. If you have really old photos that you're ready to part with, but think they might be historically significant, consider swinging by the Greensboro Historical Museum to see if they'll accept them as a donation. 

For more "is that recyclable" questions answered, use our Waste Wizard online and sign up for trash and recycle collection reminders. The reminders will automatically adjust to holidays and inclement weather too! 

We always get asked about where to put plastic bags. They should never be put in your residential recycling container and here's why.

Plastic bags, film, and wrap should never be mixed in with your recycling because it tangles around machinery at the recycling processing facility. There are a lot of rotating machines that work hard to separate your paper/cardboard products from objects like bottles and jugs.

When flimsy materials like plastic bags go through these machines, they cause a great big tangle. Folks that work at the Recycling Center must stop the machines, climb into them and cut out anything that has gotten tangled by hand--not a super safe task. By separating out objects that don't hold their shape, you make safer work environments for people in the recycling industry.

When your plastic bags, film, and wrap are recycled at the grocery store, they go to a different recycling facility that only makes one thing: plastic decking material. See the attached pictures for a look at the problems, solutions, and what plastic film can be made into!

It's a common occurrence at our house when someone asks "is this item recyclable?" As a resident recycling nerd, you might be on the receiving end of this question and sometimes wonder whether or not you are 100% sure of the correct answer.

 

When shopping for eggs, you might think about their cost, whether they're on sale, and if they're organic or cage-free, but do you ever think about the life cycle of the packaging? Oftentimes the type of carton the eggs are in can help you make your decision if recycling is important to you. I try not to buy eggs in Styrofoam cartons since Styrofoam isn't recyclable in Greensboro's program. But should you buy the clear plastic cartons or paper ones? Only the paper egg cartons can be recycled in your brown recycling carts.   

During the last several months of our recycling inspections, we've found about 30% of contamination is Styrofoam egg cartons and other foam products/packaging. This means there is careless or wishful recycling taking place. Some people know that foam isn't recyclable, but wish it could be recycled in Greensboro, so they 

So maybe you've already got a bunch of the yellow, white, blue, pink, or other color Styrofoam egg cartons. Although they can't be recycled, you can donate them at the farmers market or to your friends with backyard chickens. This means the cartons will be reused over and over again. If you're unsure about whether an item is recyclable, be sure to visit the online Waste Wizard to find out what goes where and #RecycleRight!

If you are feeling crafty, egg cartons can be re-purposed into caterpillars or crocodiles! Check out these fun ideas.

Disposable straws, plates, cups, cutlery--all of these items and countless more are single-use. As a global society, we use more single-use items today than EVER before. This is because they're cheap, convenient, and available virtually everywhere. But where in the word did this disposable culture come from?!

Believe it or not, when plastic was first widely used, it was praised as a savior of wildlife. The first synthetic plastic was created in response to a growing demand for billiard balls--which were made from elephant tusks (ivory). Plastic also filled a need previously filled by animal horns and tortoise shells. #SaveTheElephants #SaveTheTurtles

In this fascinating history of plastic, the author writes that “plastics could protect the natural world from the destructive forces of human need.” Yet today, we see the detrimental effects plastic has on the environment because it doesn’t safely biodegrade. This hurts both aquatic and terrestrial wildlife. One widely-known culprit is the plastic straw.

Plastic straws are a common single-use item. They are given (requested or not) at virtually all restaurants. Straws themselves have been around for centuries, commonly made from rye stalks. Paper straws were first widely used in the 1900s--when polio was rampant--to prevent transmission of the disease. 

Around the 1960s, straws transitioned from paper to plastic. Plastic straws are particularly problematic because they are so lightweight that they travel easily through wind and water. You may think to yourself “we are so far away from the ocean, our litter only affects our local environment.” Greensboro is uniquely positioned at the headwaters of the Cape Fear River Basin. That means that EVERYTHING  we do here flows downstream to Wilmington, the Atlantic Ocean, and beyond. Every straw used has the potential to become litter, so consider asking wait staff for your beverage with “no straw please.”

One question I frequently get is “why can’t we just recycle these single-use items? They are plastic!” Single-use plastics, like straws and cutlery, cannot be recycled for two reasons: quality of plastic and ease of separation.

Takeout food. Wonderful, delicious, hassle-free takeout food. It can be a huge help after a long day when you don’t have the groceries or energy to craft a home-cooked meal for yourself or your hungry family. But, what do you do with the various items you get when you order in? Forks, napkins, tiny sauce cups and packets, paper, plastic, or foam containers, chopsticks, oh my!

In the US, packaging makes up the largest portion of municipal trash, and single-use items account for 10% of trash coming from homes. The production, use, and disposal of packaging and single-use items generates 29% of greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, in the US--that's more than driving or heating homes. These items are used for a few minutes, or even seconds, before they are landfill-bound, where they do nothing but take up space for virtually forever. Plus, we then need to go out and extract more raw materials to make more single-use items.

A large amount of useless trash is created because businesses just hand it to you. Straws, a huge wad of napkins, and a handful of condiments you may not even need, but then have to deal with. This creates a lot of unnecessary waste in our culture. So, what can you do to make a difference?

Reduce, reuse, THEN recycle. There is a reason recycle is the third of the 3Rs. Ever get a paper bag inside of a plastic bag when you receive takeout? 

Ask for no plastic bag. Try going straw-free for the rest of this month, and let wait staff know you don’t want one when you order. Don't hesitate to say "no thank you," - it saves the business money because they don't have to reorder as quickly--plus, they may catch on with this trend!

Americans use ~100 billion plastic bags a year. That's BILLION. One study showed that 75% of people will take a plastic bag if it is offered for free, but only 16% will take one of there is a 10-cent fee. If NYC had a plastic bag fee, we could save roughly 7 BILLION plastic bags a year! This also encourages shoppers to bring their own reusable bags more often.

Out and about and need a drink? Bring a reusable water bottle with you. Many communities, including Greensboro, are installing water bottle refilling stations with their water fountains in public spaces. This is a GREAT way to reduce your need for single-use plastic bottles.

Eating out at a business that only uses disposable utensils? Bring your own. There are many options for reusable, portable cutlery. A quick Google search of "cutlery holder" will yield multiple results, plus this in-state non-profit makes them: www.dontwastedurham.com/reuse-marketplace/. Some take-out delivery services are even starting to offer a way to opt out of things like napkins and plastic ware. This helps save a lot of unnecessary waste, since you would probably be eating that in your home or office and would have access to reusable options.

You may feel like your individual action doesn't matter. It does! Your choices create cultural shift. Policies are put in place by legislatures that want to listen to their constituents. Culture change starts with individual action. When you ask a manager to stop automatically giving disposable straws at their restaurants, that small request goes a long way to making a big cultural change!

So now you know how to reduce and reuse, but what about recycling to-go packaging items? Here are your answers:

Of the items that generally come in take-out meals, none of them can be recycled. Utensils and straws are too small and low quality, napkins too low quality, plastic and foam trays can't be recycled in our area, and paper take-out containers are very soiled and mistakenly get sorted with 3D plastic and metal objects instead of with their paper compatriots.

Have another possibly-recyclable item that you're wondering about? Download our GSO Collects app and use the Waste Wizard search engine to search virtually any item to find out how to properly dispose of it. You can also sign up for collection day reminders so you never forget recycling day again! Search GSO Collects in the App Store to download, or use the online version of the app at www.greensboro-nc.gov/collects.

    

As the years pass, we have all collected DVD’s, CD’s, cassette tapes and VHS tapes, but what's the point now that most of the devices needed to play these no longer exist? So it may be time to clean up shop. If you've got an urge to purge and don't know what to do with these broken cases, discs and empty cases, read on!

Compact disc’s or CD’s, and digital video discs or DVD’s were the start of a new era. CD’s came out in the 80’s as an alternative to vinyl discs and audio cassettes. Over the years, CD’s have changed significantly, and changed the way we distribute music. The DVD came out in the 90's and provided even more capacity than the CD. They are both made of a brittle plastic called polycarbonate sandwich with a thin layer of aluminum and a protective layer of plastic or lacquer. This is the reason that they aren't recyclable in Greensboro’s recycling program. More information about CD alternative recycling can be found here and here. 

If you're holding on to homemade VHS tapes in the hope that they'll make a comeback, it's probably time to let that go. The last VCR was made in 2016. Unless you already have a VCR, you probably won't be able to find one that works. Because VHS tapes are a multiple material product with both polypropylene and Mylar, they are not recyclable in our program and can become a tangler in the sorting process. Please put these and cassette tapes in the trash.

If you're unsure about whether an item is recyclable, be sure to visit the Waste Wizard online to find out what goes where and #RecycleRight!

If you’re not ready to trash all of the above and they are still fully functioning you can always donate them to a second-hand store. If you're feeling crafty, there are some functional things you can make - check out ideas from storage case to a science project. If you have too many, you may want to reach out to schools and churches to see if any teachers might be interested in them for projects or crafts!

Have you ever wondered what to do with your old dried out nail polish? Did you know that it shouldn’t just be tossed in the trash?

Nail polish often contains toxins that are harmful to the environment, so nail polish should be taken to the Household Hazardous Waste Center.

You can also consider creative reuse options for your old nail polish! A quick google search will show you how to revitalize dried-out or gummed up nail polish and give you plenty of uses for it other than painting your nails.

Consider taking your old nail polish to Reconsidered Goods so that others in our community can use the paint, bottles, or both for creative purposes. 

There is also a mail-in recycling program for nail polish through Chemwise. They process the bottles and recycle the glass container, applicator brush, and the polish. It's not a cheap program, but if you gather enough nail polish between you and your neighbors it could be worth it!

There are many options to dispose of your old nail polish, so please, don’t send it to the landfill.

Once the holidays are over, you may wonder what to do with all the leftover gift wrap. Read on to find out!

1. Decorations, gift wrap, bags, tissue paper, bows, and ribbons cannot be recycled. Instead, they should go into your trash can. Why?
   -Gift wrap can sometimes contain layers of plastic, foil, or other items that contaminate paper recycling processes, so please do not recycle them.
   -Bows and ribbons can become tanglers! Be extra careful not to recycle them.
   -Tissue paper fibers are too low quality to be made into new things, so they're not recyclable either. 
2. If you have gently used decorations, bows, bags, etc, that you no longer want, consider donating them to Reconsidered Goods, the Creative Reuse Center of the Triad, for an end of year tax write-off!
3. Have lots of extra cardboard? Break them down before placing them in your recycling container--it saves a ton of space.

You can also try these options for creative reuse…
-Save what you can to reuse next year.
-Give gifts in reusable bags. It's the gift that everyone's happy to receive because they can use them over and over again!
-Wrap your gifts in recyclable paper. This year, I chose to use old, outdated maps and tiny reusable cloth stockings for smaller items. See the attached pictures for how I made them festive. You can often find large quantities of paper like this at Reconsidered Goods. (2805 Patterson St. Tues-Sat, 10-5, Sun 12-5)

Happy Gift-Giving!

Wrappers, decorations, costumes… oh my!

Halloween is right around the corner and you may have lingering questions about what items are recyclable, what should be trashed, and what is donation worthy.

1. Candy is the focal point of Halloween festivities. All candy wrappers and snack bags should go in your landfill-bound bin. If you have purchased a big bag of snacks, the outside bag that all the other candy or snacks came in is recyclable with your other plastic bags, film, and wrap at the grocery stores. Alternatively, check out Terracycle for a snack bag/wrapper mail in recycling program and fundraiser. Any cardboard boxes can be recycled, as long as they are empty.
2. Aluminum foil can only be recycled if it doesn't have any leftover food in it, although it's ok if it isn't 100% clean. Be sure to roll it up into a loose ball about the size of a tennis ball. Any smaller and it will fall through the cracks and not get recycled. Pro Recycler Tip: All those tiny candies and kisses that are wrapped in foil… collect the foil until you have enough to make a big enough ball!
3. Decorations are not recyclable, but if you think yours still have life in them and you're ready to get rid of them, consider donating. Not all non-profits accept decorations, but Reconsidered Goods, our local non-profit Creative Reuse Center makes items like these available to artists, teachers, makers, crafters, and you at low cost - plus you get a tax write-off for donating! Also, your unwanted decorations may become part of something new and fresh!
4. Costumes are a great item to donate or consign! Plus if you are looking for next year's costume when you donate yours, you might find a great deal! 

Every year, millions of packages, shipping envelopes, and goodies crisscross the country. Here are some common recycling questions regarding shipping and packaging:

• If your cardboard boxes have tape on them, they are ok to recycle. Break down boxes to save space!
• Sometimes packages have plastic wrap stuck to the outside to hold shipping invoices. If you could remove that plastic wrap (and recycle at the grocery store), that would be helpful. If it is stuck on with industrial glue you cannot get off, you can still recycle the cardboard box.
• Mailing envelopes that are ONLY paper, even the ones with the little plastic windows you often find in bills, are fine to recycle.
• Mailing envelopes that are ONLY made of plastic film, with or without bubble wrap, (i.e. the ones that clothing often is shipped in) are only recyclable at the grocery store--not at home.
• If a mailing envelope is both paper and plastic (i.e. the kind with bubble wrap inside and paper on the outside), those need to go in your trash can.

Check out the attached image for examples of the items above.

Have excess garbage? You can take excess trash to the Burnt Poplar Transfer Station. 

Thanksgiving… a wonderful holiday where we gather together to celebrate what we're thankful for. And after your holiday meal, remember to put all food scraps and leftovers in your trash bin or compost. Food scraps don’t belong in recycling containers.

Food is one of the most frequent contaminants at our recycling processing facility. While your recycling containers don't have to be spotless, please don't toss your half-full jars of cranberry sauce and takeout from last month in the recycling. Food scraps, leftovers, disposable plates, cups, flatware, and napkins (paper, plastic, or Styrofoam) cannot be recycled.

Disposable plastic and Styrofoam plates, no matter how clean, are not recyclable. Paper plates, napkins, and paper towels can't be recycled either because they're too low quality to be recycled into new paper products. 

Disposable cups of any kind are not recyclable. They are made of low quality materials and become a contaminant in the plastic container recycling processes. You CAN recycle disposable plastic cups.

Disposable spoons, forks, knives, and serving utensils cannot be recycled because they fall into our glass storage area. This big pile of glass travels to the glass recycling plant and they sort out non-glass material. Anything that is not glass and cannot be pulled out with a magnet will then go to the landfill.

Help reduce our waste and contamination in recycling this holiday season! Consider using reusable plates, cups, forks, and napkins for festivities and gatherings. If you do use disposable, make sure all guests know what is recyclable (plastic cups only), and that all other items should go in the trash. If you have ever considered backyard composting, try it now! Visit this site for more information about how to backyard compost.

And remember that grease should never be poured down your drain after holiday meals. Place it in a covered can or bottle and take it to the Household Hazardous Waste Center for proper disposal. 

Holiday festivities can generate a lot of waste... Let's look at common party supplies, their disposal methods, and alternatives to help you have a wasteless gathering!

• Napkins: napkins, tissues, and tissue paper can't be recycled since their fibers are too short to be made into anything new. Consider using cloth napkins over and over again. It's a great way to green up your party while making it super fancy!
• Toothpicks: even though paper is made from wood, we cannot accept any wood items in our recycling program. This includes scrap wood and those tiny toothpicks. Swap toothpicks in your cheese cubes for reusable and decorative tongs.
• Stir sticks and straws: both of these plastic items are not recyclable. Because of their shape and size, they fall through the cracks of the machinery at the recycling facility and end up going to the landfill. Consider reusable straws and stir sticks (or spoons) this season and you will not have to purchase these single-use plastics each year.
• Corks: both natural and synthetic corks are not recyclable in your regular recycling, but try one of these ideas:
  • Check out this cool Wine Cork Recycling Program! Up to 2 cents per cork is donated to causes that support forest and ocean conservation. Many of the corks they receive are also donated to non-profit organizations. 
  • Donate corks to Reconsidered Goods, the Creative Reuse Center of the Triad, for local makers, crafters, and students to create beautiful works of art with items that otherwise might have been landfilled.

Both of these organizations create American jobs for crafters, makers, and small business owners!

Wishing you happy--and wasteless--holiday gatherings!