Recycling – Part II: Helpful Hints and Common Errors

Students and staff at Big T now all generally know the basics of what and how to recycle at Big T. We still make mistakes and put things in the wrong bin occasionally, so here is some more information to discuss with your student about the finer points of recycling. We take pride in doing our best to make sure our recycling “stream” is as good as it can be here at Big T!

Most of us now know to rinse containers so that food and liquids don’t go into the single stream recycling. We do this so that the plastic is clean and of higher quality when it’s recycled (so that someone will want to buy recycled plastic instead of new), and so that workers sorting containers don’t have to deal with mold and mildew, or pressure in a bottle from fermentation when someone doesn’t rinse and forgets to remove the lid. Some lids are recyclable, but most aren’t (check for a recycling triangle with a number inside), and they are generally a different plastic or metal than the container that they come with, so please remove and dispose of those properly.

Another common error is putting plastic utensils, plastic wrap, soda six-pack rings and plastic bags into the recycling. The only one of these that is recyclable are plastic grocery bags that have the #4 in the recycling triangle and these can’t go into the recycling bin—most grocery stores have a recycling program for them (please don’t bring them to Big T as we don’t have anywhere to take them anymore!). Ask your child how they can reduce their use of plastic (see December’s Nature and Science Corner on Plastic Bags).

While most papers are recyclable, some forms are not. Tissues, paper towels, and coffee filters are usually not the right sort of paper to be recycled, and generally are not clean and dry after use. Ask your child if they have some ideas for how to reduce their use of napkins, paper towels and tissues (use cloth towels and napkins, use handkerchiefs, etc). Paper plates often have food residues or are coated with a thin layer of plastic or wax which makes them non-recyclable. Cardboard can be recycled, though pizza boxes usually cannot because of the grease that is on them. They make great kindling for a fire though! What other ways can you keep items out of the landfill? (Compost the papers mentioned above along with food, choose items with less packaging or recyclable packaging, reuse containers, buy food in bulk, etc.)

Stay tuned for updates from our newly forming Green Team on the state of recycling and composting and all things “green” at Big T! Check out our Green Blog at bigtgreent.blogspot.com (you can find previous Nature and Science Corners here in addition to updates and thoughts from the students).

If you have any questions about recycling or anything else “Green” please contact Amber Lamb, our Nature and Science Coordinator, at lamba@thompson.k12.co.us

(This week's Nature and Science Corner)