Are you wondering what items go to the recycling bin? It is easier to collect recyclable material at home with hassle-free recycling strategies like the single stream.
However, the worrying trend is that 25% of recycling is useless trash destined for landfills due to contamination.
Recycling contamination stems from putting the wrong things in the recycling bin. Keep reading to know the six things to recycle in 2022.
But first, ensure that you have your curbside recycling container for home or office recycling and roll-off dumpster for C&D recycling—more on this below.
Recyclable things in 2022
1. Plastic
Plastic items are the most popular items to recycle, but there is a draw line on the recyclable plastic types.
Typically, you can recycle plastic bottles, jugs, and containers like juice and milk bottles. Detergent containers and cleaning product bottles are also eligible for recycling.
However, don’t recycle plastic items like wrappers, hose pipes, straws, plastic caps, and bags. These plastic items are some of the most significant recycling contaminants making it hard to recycle plastics, and you can consider alternative recycling for such things.
2. Glass
Glass is one of the most valuable recycling materials, thanks to its infinite recyclable nature.
Additionally, recycling glass can save up to 95% of raw materials used to make new glass products.
There are many types of glass products, and like plastic, not all glass materials fit in the curbside recycling.
The most recyclable glass is the flint, brown, and green-colored glass. You can recycle beverage glass bottles and food glass jars in your curbside recycling.
3. Paper and cardboard
Paper and cardboard are also items that you can recycle in 2022. If you can tear that paper, you can 100% recycle it. Ensure that the paper and cardboard are dry with no food residue to prevent recycling contamination.
Paper and cardboard are recycled into new printing and writing papers, napkins, and toilet paper.
Remember, you can recycle paper and cardboard with their staples, clips, envelope windows, and tapes.
Ensure to flatten the cardboard to create space in the bin for more recycling.
4. Aluminum containers
The aluminum recycling rate stands at 34.9%, according to the EPA. This means aluminum is one of the things that you can recycle in 2022.
And like glass, you can also recycle aluminum endlessly without losing its quality.
You can toss your aluminum beverage cans, canned goods containers, aluminum foil, aerosol, and paint cans in the recycling bin.
Again the rule here is to ensure the aluminum containers are clean to avoid damaging the whole recycling batch.
Don’t crush the tins, especially if you’re using single-stream recycling, so they are traceable during the recycling at MRF.
5. Steel containers
From pet food cans to aerosol cans to canned human food cans, steel containers are part and parcel of life. The steel containers often end up in our homes thanks to them being the best food and liquid packaging material.
Luckily, you can also recycle steel multiple times, so go ahead and put your tin cans in the blue bin after using them. Ensure to remove the leftover food and liquids before recycling your steel containers.
6. Construction and demolition waste
Did you know that you can recycle bricks, concrete, or other masonry materials? That’s right! You can recycle construction debris, including rocks, drywall, wood, plaster, metals, plastic, plumbing fixtures, wires, and metals.
Whether you have a home renovation endeavor or supervise a construction site, you can let TKG Services recycle your construction or demolition waste.
C&D recycling is a step toward green building and can earn you a LEED certification.
TKG Services is a team of recycling stewards aiming to divert as much construction debris from the landfills. Contact us for your recycling needs.