Can You Recycle Plastic?
Can You Recycle Plastic?
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Well that depends- what type of plastic is it? Does your municipality recycle that kind of plastic? Is that type of plastic even recyclable? Does it actually get recycled?
Well that depends- what type of plastic is it? Does your municipality recycle that kind of plastic? Is that type of plastic even recyclable? Does it actually get recycled?
Some will say recycling is an outright scam, and they aren’t 100% wrong. There has been some shady dealings going on for several years in relation to our recyclables. You know the logo with three arrows that chase themselves with a number in the middle at the bottom of plastic products? If you’re like me, you assume that means it can be recycled, and throw it into the recycling bin, thinking you did your part, and it will become something new. Well, I’ve since changed my ways after discovering that up to 2018, most of the USA was shipping our plastic “recyclables” to China, where it would go into a landfill or be burnt, releasing toxic chemicals into the ground and our atmosphere. Fast forward to 2024, China and other Asian countries don’t want our plastic junk anymore, and I mean, can you blame them? In 2022, a Greenpeace USA report showed that we generated 51 million tons of plastic in 2021 and only 2.4 million tons were recycled.
Now its 2024, and we are starting to find ways to make sure plastic gets recycled. But get this- only three types of plastics can be recycled. Let’s look at the 7 different kinds of plastic, their use and if they can be recycled.
(1) PET – 25% in the US gets recycled. Can be made into textiles like fleece, carpet and pillow stuffing. Not great for reuse since it’s difficult to disinfect.
a. Ex: single use water bottles.
(2) HDPE –35% in the US gets recycled. Considered the safest form of plastic. Does not break down and can withstand extreme temps.
a. Ex: bags, shampoo bottles, toys, truck bed liners, raised gardens.
(3) PVC – less than 1% is recycled. PVC is aka “poison plastic” because it leaches numerous toxins throughout its lifecycle.
a. Ex: pipes, door/window profiles, flooring, plastic wrap, computer cables, toys.
(4) LDPE – Often times can be reused, just not always recycled.
a. Ex: six pack rings, shrink wrap, plastic wrap, landscaping, floor tiles.
(5) 5-PP – 3% is recycled in US to make landscaping boarders, brooms, and bins.
a. Ex: Tupperware, yogurt containers, disposable diapers, straws, potato chip bags.
(6) PS – cannot be recycled and accounts for 35% of US landfill material. It’s highly flammable, leaches chemicals when heated and breaks apart easily, finding its way into our environment.
a. Ex: foam egg cartons, beverage cups, packing peanuts.
(7) OTHER – catch -all for all other plastics. Items marked with “PC” usually contain BPAs, i. e. not good for you. Items marked with “PLA” are made with polymers like corn starch and are not recyclable but are compostable. These are not bad for you.
a. Ex: eye protection, phones, baby bottles, car parts.
Here is a handy chart if you’re a visual person, like me. To recap, #1,#2, and #4 are safer choices. #3,#5, #6 should be avoided if possible and #7 is ok if it says “PLA” or “compostable”.
Really, the best thing you can do for yourself, and the planet is to try to find ways around using single-use plastic and plastic products.
Some ways to do that are:
- Bringing reusable cloth bags to the grocery store along with net bags to put produce in.
- Take a reusable water bottle everywhere you go. Bring a metal thermos if needed.
- Buy produce at fruit stands or a farmers' market when possible. This will ensure you are buying food in season.
- Store leftovers in glass or stainless steel.
- Re-use glass jars.
- Replace laundry soap with sheet detergent.
- Replace Ziplock plastic with silicone food storage bags.
- Replace saran wrap with beeswax clothes.
It must be pointed out that the responsibility should not fall solely on the consumer and that many Americans aren’t in a financial position to buy more costly alternatives. Start small by changing one habit at a time. If you must get to-go food, have a pair of reusable silverware/cloth napkins on you and tell the restaurant to omit them with your order. If you start to skip take-out and bring food from home, invest in a few glass Tupperware bowls and silicone resealable bags for your snacks. Leave cloth bags in your trunk for an impromptu grocery trip. If you notice that something you’re about to buy is made of plastic, ask yourself, “is this something I really need?” Try your best to reuse or refill.
Okay, now you’re probably wondering “What do I do with all of this plastic that I already have when I don’t need it anymore?”
Head on over to your county’s website to see what kind of plastic they recycle or where you can take it to be recycled.
If you live in King County, you can click on this link for more information about where to recycle plastic:
https://info.kingcounty.gov/services/recycling-garbage/solid-waste/what-do-i-do-with/materials?cat=2
Some examples include packing peanuts (take them to shipping centers), plant pots (some plant nurseries will take them back), and plastic bags (transfer stations can accept them for recycling, just don’t put them in your bin). If you click on an option, the website will provide a list of places to go to recycle said item, with a map to accompany it. You can also pay for services like Ridwell or look into local zero-waste programs like Re+ if you’re in King County, WA. If you have plastic that could be used in art projects, donating to local Reuse stores such as Seattle Recreative, SCRAP Creative Reuse and Cats Eye Creative Reuse is a great option. Remember: one person’s trash is another person’s treasure!
Fun fact: King County has only one regional landfill facility that includes 31 acres of active landfill space. Shockingly, almost 70 percent of the “trash” sent to the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill each year could have been repurposed. In other words, most of us are just throwing items away without thinking about other options such as donating or recycling them.
Okay here's the fun fact: gases from Cedar Hills Landfill are converted and used to power over 17,500 homes in King County. How cool is that?!
Now for the not so fun fact: the BioEnergy Washington (BEW) plant chose to shut down in October of 2023 due to exceeding permittable limits of arsenic in the wastewater generated by converting methane gas into pipeline quality gas. According to King County, BEW has been given an option to dispose of their arsenic water at a treatment facility, but BEW has refused and has opted instead to cease operations and just flare the gas. This means they are burning the methane (and arsenic) which contributes to Greenhouse Gas Emissions and is terrible for the environment. For whatever reason, BEW thinks wasting resources is a better option the sending their wastewater to a treatment plant.
If you would like to voice your concerns, the number and website for Cedar Hills Regional Landfill and BioEnergy Washington can be found below.
Phone: 206-477-4466 or 711 TTY Relay. This phone line is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Cedar Hills Regional Landfill webpage
To report a concern related to Bio Energy Washington (landfill gas-to-energy facility)
Phone: 425-392-3918
Bio Energy Washington website
If you care about our planet, you can make a huge difference by thinking twice before you buy and opt to purchase items without plastic casing. If you do have to purchase plastic, try to dispose of it through channels that can give it new life.
If you have some systems in place in your own home, please share!
Works Cited
https://www.plasticsforchange.org/blog/different-types-of-plastic
https://learn.eartheasy.com/articles/plastics-by-the-numbers/
https://info.kingcounty.gov/services/recycling-garbage/solid-waste/what-do-i-do-with/materials?cat=2
https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/WAKING/bulletins/37ac316
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