Recycling plastics

“Humanity’s plastic footprint is probably more dangerous than its carbon footprint”.

These words, courtesy of Captain Charles Moore, who in 1997 discovered the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, reflect the current state of our human existence which depends nearly entirely on the invention of plastics. The cheap production of plastic materials, combined with our throw-away society (meaning many of the items we produce are meant to be disposable rather than reusable) has resulted in an abundance of plastic in our environment, much of it making its slow journey toward our oceans. The structural composition of plastics results in a durable product that’s made to last a very long time. When thrown in a landfill, plastics take up space and don’t breakdown for millennia. The good news is recycling plastic items gives those long-lived products an extended chance to make the most out of their long life. Because of our collective proclivity to want to do what’s right, there are great programs in place to recycle our plastic items.

If you've ever recycled plastic, you've probably turned over the plastic items, searching for that little number inside the recycling triangle telling you whether or not that item was recyclable. That little number doesn't necessarily tell you that it's recyclable; that number simply tells you the type of plastic it is. Additionally, even if the item in question is recyclable, not everything is accepted everywhere- not every community has the funds or the desire to support recycling facilities that accept multiple types of items for recycling. Many people are not aware that just because it says it's recyclable, it may or may not actually be accepted by your local recycling facility.

Here in Jackson, many types of plastics are accepted at our facilities. Our recycling providers generally accept items #1-7. However, there are many plastic items that are not accepted and should not be thrown in the recycling bin.

Examples of items that shouldn’t be put in the recycle bin include:

Plastic film wrap (i.e Saran wrap, sandwich bags, freezer bags) This type of plastic ends up clogging the machines in the recycling facility and can result in the temporary shutdown of the facility.

Plastic grocery bags These are not accepted due the same reasons listed above. These bags can be reused, or you can take them to stores such as Meijer, Kroger, Target, etc, for recycling.

Plastic packaging (snack and candy wrappers, plastic cereal packaging, etc) Like the other plastics not listed here, these items can get caught up in machinery.

Bulky and rigid plastics (5-gallon buckets, children's toys, lawn furniture, hard plastic food storage containers, Rubbermaid and other brands of totes and tubs, etc) While rigid plastics is the fastest growing category of plastics being recycled, and these items may be recyclable in other locations, we don't have the capability to recycle them here in Jackson. Please find a way to reuse those types of items or take them to a reuse center such as Habitat for Humanity!