In a July 15, 2020 article in the Napa Valley Register by Kendra Bruno ("Compost Girl"), she explained recycling in as clear a way as you will ever hear.
Just because a package or bottle has the recycle logo embossed on it, doesn't mean your waste company considers it recyclable. Quoting Kendra Bruno:
"Clearing up a big misunderstanding: The “chasing arrows triangle” does not mean the item is recyclable, rather it is just identifying what type of plastic resin it is made from."
In order to determine what your local recycler will take (if you have a local recycler), you have to go to your town's website and download a list of what they consider recyclable.
Notice that in one of the recycle images above, there is a number 1 in the middle of the chasing arrows. To quote Kendra again:
"For example, if you see #1 (soda bottles, for example), it stands for polyethylene terephthalate. Have a #6? Well, that is polystyrene (PS) – Styrofoam in a different form. Got a #4 on a film plastic item? That’s a Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE)..."
So the numbers are an indication of the kind of plastic that product is made of.
As more and more industries develop ways to use recycled plastics in more innovative ways (see my blog post ) then more and more plastics will find their ways into recycle bins.
Plastic bags and filmy plastics cannot be recycled, at this point, because of the damage they do to the recycling machines. And many states and localities are phasing out these filmy plastic products.
Kendra finishes her article:
"Curious [about] some actions you can take to help?
- Buy things with less packaging
- Limit online purchases that are shipped using film plastics
- Learn what is recyclable in [your town]
- Buy items made from recycled content, if possible, when you need to purchase something
- Urge for extended producer responsibility
- Don’t use it (as much as you possibly can"
- And you don't need to keep upgrading your cell phone. That is a huge plastic waste.
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