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Below is our Dirty Dozen hit list of the worst recycling contaminants that must NOT go in the recycling bin.
One of the challenges to single-stream recycling is the increase in contamination. Folks tend to get a little recycling happy, tossing additional items into the bin. But, sending us non-recyclable materials jeopardizes the success of the whole program.
Please help make single-stream recycling a success by keeping these materials OUT.
You can also learn more about single-stream recycling or print recycling guidelines from our latest newsletter.
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1. NO Plastic Bags
Plastic bags are the WORST contaminant in the recycling bin. When placed in a curbside bin, they
get wet and dirty and cannot be recycled. Plastic bags with a #2 or #4 can be recycled at the CHaRM if
they are clean, dry and empty. They may also be recycled at participating grocery stores.
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2. NO Materials in Plastic Bags
Workers have to slow the conveyor belts to rip open bags that contain recyclables and then add the
bag to the heap of bags bound for the landfill. These
inefficiencies waste time and money.
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3. NO Non-Recyclable Plastics
While we have added new plastic items, many plastics are still not recyclable. Plastic lids,
Styrofoam®, plastic pots and any other plastics not listed in our recycling guidelines are not recyclable because
stable markets do not exist for these materials.
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4. NO Plastic Lids or Caps
Plastic lids and caps are NOT recyclable on or off the bottle. Tossed in separate from the bottle, they are not pulled out by our processing screens and contaminate both the glass and the plastic materials. They are also a non-recyclable plastic
without a market.
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5. NO Caps and Lids Left on the Containers
Left on the bottle, caps and lids keep liquid inside the container (see item #7). Please remove and recycle metal caps and jar lids separately. Please THROW AWAY plastic caps and lids!
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6. NO Liquids
When we compact bottles for shipping, liquids drip, splatter and explode all over the floor, creating
a sticky stew with a stench. Please completely empty and give a quick rinse to all containers before
recycling.
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7. NO Ceramics or Non-Recyclable Glass
Ceramic, china, dishes, mirrors, light bulbs, Pyrex®, porcelain and window glass should not go in the bin! Their different melting points and chemical compositions will ruin new glass bottles. If our buyer sees just one of these on the top of a load of glass, the entire load could be rejected.
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8. NO Diapers or Other Bio-Hazardous Waste
Syringes and needles, diapers and other sanitary products are not recyclable OR compostable.
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9. NO Shredded Paper
Shredded paper is too small to sort—the pieces fall through the cracks of the sorting machines, stick
to the belts and end up all over the floor. Please
avoid shredding when possible because it destroys
the potential for recycling. Compost shredded
materials in your curbside compost bin (if you have one) or recycle them with paperboard at the
Longmont or Boulder recycling drop-off centers.
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11. NO Scrap Metal
Scrap metal items of any size should not go in your curbside bin. These items cause excessive damage
to the recycling equipment. Please take these materials to either the Boulder or Longmont recycling
drop-off centers and look for the specially-marked
scrap metal bin.
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12. NO Frozen Food Containers
Paperboard boxes that were designed for freezer foods, such as frozen pizza and entrées, have
a plastic polymer sprayed on them to protect against
freezer burn. That same coating prevents the box from breaking up in the recycling process. These materials
are not recyclable OR compostable.
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