As you all know, I can’t stand to waste things, and proper disposal of the few things we have to waste is important to me for the benefit of all of us. This is information from the DPW for Anne Arundel County.
We do accept all types of rigid plastics, plastic bags and shrink wrap. This would include plastic disposable pens and yes, toothbrushes. At this time we do not accept toothpaste tubes (toothpaste bottles or pumps are ok though) or chip/snack bags or wrappers. Chip/snack bags and wrappers are typically made from cellophane which is not accepted by our recycling processor. (Note from Julie: FYI, Severna Park Elementary and other schools and organizations are currently sending snack bags and wrappers to an organization called Terracycle, which gives the school back .02/wrapper. The wrappers are upcycled into folders, pencil cases and other items and kept out of the landfill. Benfield Elementary School is accepting toothpaste tubes. For information on where to drop them off, please contact me. If you want more information about Terracycle, see www.terracycle.net.)
As for Styrofoam, yes, it is fine to put it in your recycling container even though our processor doesn't currently have a market interested in purchasing Styrofoam for the purpose of recycling. Our processor is well aware of the existence of Styrofoam within our recycling stream and is constantly looking for new markets for materials that show up in the stream, but are not marketable. That said there are other organization that do accept Styrofoam. Styrofoam packing “peanuts” are accepted for reuse at mail/postal stores such as the UPS Store or Parcel Plus. Please call ahead for availability. Other types of Styrofoam, such as coolers, food containers or blocks, are accepted for recycling at the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers in Crofton, their phone number is 410-451-8340.
Another note from Julie: remember that fluorescent bulbs must be recycled so that the mercury doesn’t enter the ground water. I often see people’s long fluorescent tubes in their trash cans and wish I could disseminate this information more widely. They can be brought to the County’s hazardous waste recycling days.
If you know of other useful recycling information or sources, please let me know.
We do accept all types of rigid plastics, plastic bags and shrink wrap. This would include plastic disposable pens and yes, toothbrushes. At this time we do not accept toothpaste tubes (toothpaste bottles or pumps are ok though) or chip/snack bags or wrappers. Chip/snack bags and wrappers are typically made from cellophane which is not accepted by our recycling processor. (Note from Julie: FYI, Severna Park Elementary and other schools and organizations are currently sending snack bags and wrappers to an organization called Terracycle, which gives the school back .02/wrapper. The wrappers are upcycled into folders, pencil cases and other items and kept out of the landfill. Benfield Elementary School is accepting toothpaste tubes. For information on where to drop them off, please contact me. If you want more information about Terracycle, see www.terracycle.net.)
As for Styrofoam, yes, it is fine to put it in your recycling container even though our processor doesn't currently have a market interested in purchasing Styrofoam for the purpose of recycling. Our processor is well aware of the existence of Styrofoam within our recycling stream and is constantly looking for new markets for materials that show up in the stream, but are not marketable. That said there are other organization that do accept Styrofoam. Styrofoam packing “peanuts” are accepted for reuse at mail/postal stores such as the UPS Store or Parcel Plus. Please call ahead for availability. Other types of Styrofoam, such as coolers, food containers or blocks, are accepted for recycling at the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers in Crofton, their phone number is 410-451-8340.
Another note from Julie: remember that fluorescent bulbs must be recycled so that the mercury doesn’t enter the ground water. I often see people’s long fluorescent tubes in their trash cans and wish I could disseminate this information more widely. They can be brought to the County’s hazardous waste recycling days.
If you know of other useful recycling information or sources, please let me know.
