Erin Essex, explorer and creative

Before quarantine Otto and I took a magical tour of the NYC recycling facility in Red Hook Brooklyn. This article I wrote in 2019 but never posted it. In quarantine I find myself now more than ever thinking about recycling because we really want reduce waste more than ever. We even are composting out in the yard (at our home upstate, not in NYC). So I thought that it was about damn time I post this thing because the information I learned that day is so useful.

Im into weird things, readers of this blog already know that, and so a tour of the local NYC recycling facility seemed like a cool thing to do. So I took the train (Otto coming along too) down to Red Hook Brooklyn and took in all the smells!

I learned a lot of shocking things about recycling so here are a few I want to share with you.
Quick note - the things I’m sharing below are specific to the NYC recycling system which is a 2 stream system. You should check with your local recycling facility for their specific rules.

#5 Plastic: Take your top off / Glass: Keep your top on

The problem: Lids are recycled differently depending on if the base container is made of plastic or glass. Most think they have to be taken off, which is only partially true.
Why: Plastic bottles have one type of plastic that is a different grade plastic than the lid. Glass jars typically have a metal top and glass is vulnerable to breaking while in transit (see bonus tip below as to why this in important).
What you can do: For plastic definitely take off the top, that way the optical scanners can put the different plastics in the right place. For glass they keep the lids on this way the jar is less likely to break and then both the glass and the metal lid can be recycled. If the jar breaks the glass wont be stuck in the lid and the lid can be sucked up by the metal magnet.
Bonus shocking tip - You might not know this but BROKEN GLASS CANNOT BE RECYCLED, so the challenge is to keep the glass intact but with the lids off.

Note: some municipalities do things differently, so check with your local recycling facility.

#4 Cartons make me kinda sad

The problem: Do you put these in with paper or metal? What happens to the lid?
Why: A carton seems to be made of paper, plastic, and metal…so where does it go?
What you can do: Turns out cartons are supposed to go with the PAPER recycling (if you have a 2 stream system like we have in NYC). When recycled the only thing that gets extracted is a piece of paper within the layers of the carton container, and that single piece of paper can only be used to make paper towels. The rest of the container goes to the landfill.

#3 Paper cups cannot be recycled

The problem: You assume they can be recycled! BUT they cannot.
Why: Each manufacturer of cups makes them differently, waxes or coatings on the inside, therefore not making a consistent product and thereby making them impossible to recycle.
What you can do: Just stop, bring your own cup. Not only do many coffee spots allow you to bring your own cup but some even offer a discount! The shop across from my apartment gives 10% off if you bring your own travel mug.

#2 Soft plastics (like bags and cellophane coverings) are never good

The problem: You think putting soft plastics with “plastic” will get recycled, but you are dead wrong.
Why: Soft plastics are hard to recycle and there are not many buyers that want this type of plastic. So when you throw it with the recycling it is definitely going to the landfill instead.
What you can do: Many grocers in NY state over 10.000 sqft must have plastic bag recycling drop off bins. These bins are then sent to a recycling facility that will actually use this plastic and generally its used to make fake lumber for decking. BUT STILL reducing the amount of plastic you use is always a good thing as most of these bags will never be recycled.

UPDATE: With New York’s plastic bag ban the plastic bags will certainly be reduced but still worth nothing any time you receive one.

#1 Single stream vs. duel stream - there is a difference

The problem: Ever wonder why some cities do single stream and others have you separate out the paper?
Why: Paper is very sensitive. If paper is wet or soiled it CANNOT BE RECYCLED. Thats right, your paper plate you threw in the recycling is headed for the landfill. Therefore duel stream hopes to curb some of that paper from being contaminated by having people separate it out. However, this manual separate at the home level decreases overall recycling behavior in homes, therefore the single stream was adopted. Single stream increases overall recycling participation but makes the paper products less usable and likely to be dumped.
What you can do: What your city does is how it is, but if you do have single stream you can help out your local facility by working to keep your paper dry and bailed together.

My trash takeaways

Going to the recycling facility was a real eye opener to me. So many things I thought could be recycled are not and it made me really think about the things that I buy and how recyclable they are.

Plan your very own recycling center tour by googling your local recycling center OR if you are in NYC visit SIMS Municipal Recycling center (after quarantine is over of course).

5 CRAZY things I learned about at the Recycling plant