Is Your Recycling Just Trash in Disguise? Why Recycling Fails and How You Can Do It Right

Think you’re recycling correctly? You might be sending it all to the landfill without realizing it. In this article, we break down what really happens when you toss something in the recycling bin. From sorting facilities and processing methods to why only 9% of plastic is actually recycled, we cover how everyday habits, such as not rinsing containers or using plastic bags, can contaminate an entire batch of recyclables. You’ll learn about the top recycling mistakes people make and how to decode those confusing plastic number symbols. This article will help you recycle smarter, reduce waste, and make a real impact.

Check out our previous post, Trash Talk: What Happens After You Throw Something Away, to get even more info on where your waste goes and what to do about it.

The Process

First of all, what is recycling? The EPA defines it as “the process of collecting and processing materials that would otherwise be thrown away as trash and turning them into new products.” But how does the water bottle you throw into the recycling bin get to this point, if it ever does? When you throw something in a designated recycling bin, in a perfect world, it would be collected by either a private company or a government entity. This is virtually the same as garbage pick up and also has a variety of methods like curbside pick up, drop off centers, recycling dumpsters, and sometimes deposit or refund programs. Sometimes these recyclable materials that are in with standard waste get sorted out as well. 

After all of these materials are collected, they are taken to a recovery facility where they are sorted and cleaned. The first stages of this sometimes happen manually, where large pieces are sorted and/or any obvious pieces that cannot be recycled are removed. Other times this process involves the use of machinery. An optical sorter for example, separates different plastics, and an Eddy Current Separator uses magnetic induction to sort through different metals. There are also air classifiers to separate items by weight and magnetic separators, which use magnets to pull out and separate different materials.

Once everything is separated, these materials are processed respectively before being processed to be recycled. This looks different for every category of materials. Plastics could be shredded and melted to be reused in some way, similarly, metals are crushed and melted down. Paper and cardboard are pulped, which means the fibers are really, really broken down and mixed with water to make a slurry mixture. All of that to say these materials are broken down to then be reused in some capacity. 

The recycling process sounds amazing; it's good for the environment, can help conserve resources and reduce greenhouse gases, can contribute to a more circular economy, and can lead to some savings. But this process is incredibly flawed.

Only 9% of the world’s plastic is recycled.

The rest is thrown away to end up in a landfill or burned, or mismanaged in some way. 

Why? Several reasons, not all of which we have clear answers to. But let's talk about contamination because that is something we, as everyday people, have a bit of influence over.

Contamination

In the context of recycling, contamination means the wrong things are put in the recycling bins, so non-recyclable materials are mixed with recyclable materials and/or unclean materials are mixed with the clean materials. In either scenario, this can ruin the entire batch of recycling and could lead it to going to a landfill instead. 

In the UK specifically, 84% of households are unintentionally contaminating their recycling bins. For the US, the contamination rate is 25% meaning, on average, every 1 in 4 items put in the recycling bin cannot actually be recycled. 

What is deemed recyclable is going to vary depending on where you live, so make sure to check with your local council if you’re in the UK or your township or county if you’re in the States. There are certain things however, that should never go in your recycling bin no matter what! This includes food waste, any type of animal waste or diapers, food containers, anything that is greasy or wet, and any female hygiene products including plastic applicators! You can double check with your council but more often than not any type of plastic or materials associated with bodily fluids or PPE is not recyclable due to contamination risks. Again check with your local council for further specifics but in any research that I have done those are a few things to never be recycled.

Recyclingbins.co.uk did a post talking about a study done by Recycle Now and listed out the top 10 recycling contaminants in the UK. These are items commonly thrown in the recycle bin that cannot actually be recycled:

• drinking glasses

• foil pouches

• toothpaste tubes

• plastic film lids

• tissues and paper towels

• glass cookwares

• plastic film

• cartons

• plastic toys

• frozen vegetable bags

Keep an eye out for those things and make sure to dispose of them properly.

How to Properly Recycle

1. Recycling Symbols

When in doubt, look for the classic little triangle made out of arrows, but have you noticed the little numbers inside of those? Those little numbers are the Resin Identification Code or IRC they range from 1 to 7 and are used for proper recycling and help with waste management. These numbers correspond to a specific type of plastic. The number 2, for example, means the material is made out of High-Density Polyethylene. Chances are, your milk jugs or laundry detergent bottles have a number 2 on them. Number 7 though just represents “other” so if something is not made up of the most common other 6, it is labeled with a 7. Not all facilities recycle number 7 plastics since it's so vague, but again thats something to check with your local council about. 

Once you establish what kind of plastics your local facilities accept, you can be sure to look out for these numbers and that you're recycling the correct ones.

2. Wash Your Recycling

Rinsing your recyclables can help reduce contamination by ensuring any leftover food or liquid left on the items is discarded before entering the bin. This does 2 things: it helps prevent contamination of the whole bin because there's nothing to spill and get all over it, and it contributes to the efficiency of the whole recycling process. After being sorted within the recycling facilities, the materials are washed before being processed and used to make other goods. The cleaner the materials are that enter the facility, the less energy and resources are needed to clean them. This of course, is a bottom-up approach to efficiency but a collective effort could have a big impact.

3. Skip Bagging Your Recyclables

Keeping your recycling items loose in the bin is also very important because if the items are kept in a bag, especially if it is not see-through. The items will not be sorted and will instead be thrown away since there is no telling what's inside. If you think about the volume of waste these sorting facilities have to go through every single day, there is no time to be opening individual bags, especially because the sorting process is often a mix of manual and machine labor. The robot is not going to untie your garbage bag, it will remove it form the pile and move on. For the people employed by the sorting facilities, it is a health and safety risk to untie closed bags as there could be dangerous contaminants inside.

In Conclusion:

Recycling is a very inefficient process; however, it is better than the alternative of things ending up in landfills.

It is not our fault this system is set up inefficiently, but we do play a direct part in it and can help out with its efficiency in being more mindful regarding our recycling practices.

The biggest issue is to make sure you aren't accidentally contaminating your recycling bin and to make sure you’re recycling the correct things. Check with your local councils to see what the recycling facilities accept, and use those little triangles and numbers to guide you. Additionally, make sure you're rinsing off and drying anything you do recycle, and make sure to leave it all loose in the bin for collection. 

For more information about where your household waste goes, check out our article on landfills here.