Recycle This Or....
After a number of conversations this week, I’ve been compelled to write about recycling; and not about textile recycling, but recycling in general, and my own evolved relationship with it.
I grew up in the 90’s when the recycling message was STRONG. It was taught in school and when Earth Day came around, it actually felt like it was an important day, not just another average day. [But I guess that’s most holidays lately (unfortunately).] There would be so much energy prepping for the day and projects to make. I remember a couple of times, even before I started school (remember science nerd here lol), that I would watch this DIY, home science/art video for project ideas and it was full of things! I loved how they made sugar sculpture art and all of that. But there were also the cardboard based projects they stressed a lot, including using paper towel and toilet paper rolls. And then I got into kindergarten and first grade where we started talking about saving our soda cans to recycle or use for a project. I’m pretty sure by this point I started talking about what I had learned and thinking about all the things we could do with our “trash”. (And I’m sure my folks probably looked at me like, yeah we can do some of that, but there are other factors you don’t know about yet.) It probably helped that I was also interested in how things work and wanted help my dad or grandad with any projects they had going on.
As I got older, I noticed we didn’t recycle or have a trash service, but we did take our trash to the local dump (landfill) where some things could be separated. Newspapers and magazines were definitely items I remember throwing in the recycling collection dumpsters. We also took other old electronics or furniture there from time to time, outside of going to Goodwill or Salvation Army. Where I grew up was pretty rural, yet halfway suburban. (If this tells you anything, I grew up with my grandad having a barrel he could burn his newspaper and other trash in…and still does to this day [depending on what it is, luckily he’s not intentionally burning toxic things like plastic or styrofoam…] The area I grew up in really didn’t become more suburban until I was getting ready to enter into middle school when the development neighborhoods blew up and started popping up quickly. So we had to take our trash to the landfill ourselves, which is an experience I don’t think many people have had.
Which then brings me back to the point of this…recycling. No, it’s not the answer to everything, but within the conversations I’ve had and things I’ve noticed, there’s still a lack of information that sticks. And after listening to the Green Behavior Podcast, I’ve been thinking deeper and deeper on the psychology of our behaviors as consumers and even as a designer (more to come on this), especially when it comes to how we signal messages and to whom. But what really ignited this journal entry was discovering that not everyone knows what can be recycled and what the local waste management company will and won’t take as a recyclable. And the thing that has been grinding my gears the most over the past couple of months at our studio, is not covering the recycling dumpster to protect the cardboard….But! I squirlled again….
A lot of items have markings on them letting us know if and how they can be recycled. That’s the worst part about plastic…and coated cardboard. Just because it is, doesn’t mean that it can be recycled. So what are some common things we want to recycle but need to know a little more about?
Not all plastic is equal. Some plastics are made of low density polyethylene (LDPE) which is actually most commonly used in: grocery bags, food packaging, and other plastic film-like products. Luckily, it can be recycled, however, these types of plastic need to be returned to designated locations, like your grocery store or private recycling facility. Here in Cincinnati, we have amazing resources and organizations dedicated to recycling and reuse, like the Cincinnati Recycling & Reuse Hub.
AI Image produced by Gamma AI Clean out your recyclables. If one item is contaminated and thrown in with the rest of your recycling goodies, you’ve contaminated the whole lot. One of the key points I pulled from my hazardous waste class was this. As soon as anything goes into the recycling that shouldn’t be there and touches, saturates, spreads, etc. any other item in the receptacle, nothing is worth recycling, nor will it be recycled even if it’s collected. That’s why it’s our duty as consumers and waste management customers to clean or recyclables to the best of our ability and dry them before putting them in the dumpster. That means: no food leftover in containers, no liquid detergent or cleaner left in a bottle, and no grease stained or food crusted cardboard or aluminum foil. It may seem like more work, but imagine the amount of items that get diverted to landfill as opposed to recycling for just these bare things to be mindful of.
For anything you’re unsure of, and if it isn’t clearly marked, pitch it. Obviously, if it’s plain paper, you can put it in the recycling. But if we’re talking cleaning or food containers, if it’s questionable you may want to get rid of it. Or better idea! Check to see if you have a local recycling and reuse hub that will potentially take those items. Our Hub has detailed signage and information as to what they’ll take. So when I had two large styrofoam coolers come my way and I couldn’t reuse them, I took them there. Utilizing reuse resources like the Hub is going to be key for a number of items.
And of course, you know I have to at least touch on textiles. Recycling textiles is hard, but it is being done. My best suggestion is to find your local zero waste program, or someone like me, that will take your textiles (unless they’re beyond saving). Also, if it is a 100% natural fiber, you could always try composting it in your yard (some of that also depends on the dyes and finishes though as to if it will be successful).
But anyway! Now that I’ve talked your proverbial ear off, go enjoy the rest of your week.
Until next time, live life with eyes wide open! :)
Great post! I didn’t realize the implications of not rinsing out recyclables. Creating a load of contaminated materials is not something I would ever wanna do.
I found out recently that you aren’t supposed to crush cans because the sorting technology uses the shape of the can and other visual cues to sort it correctly. If the can is crushed, it may not get recycled because the system won’t know what it is.