The Lee County Solid Waste Department’s residential curbside recycling slogan is “Recycle Smart, 5 for the Cart.” This means there are five categories of materials that are acceptable in your weekly curbside recycling bin, and these are the only five categories of materials that are appropriate. There may be other “recyclable” items that are not accepted in our curbside program.
These are the items you should be recycling weekly:
• Paper: Basically, any kind of paper except shredded, waxed, metallic, or soiled paper should be recycled. Newspapers, magazines, junk mail, catalogs, phone books, etc., can all go in with your recycling. HINT – hard cover books are not recyclable but can be donated at the library and other donation sites.
• Metal Cans: This category includes only clean metal (steel, tin) or aluminum cans and lids. There is no need to remove labels or crush cans. Disposable aluminum pans and foil are not recyclable. Also, do not attempt to recycle tools, pots and pans, metal lawn furniture, or scrap metal in the curbside program.
• Cardboard: All boxes are recyclable unless they held a liquid, such as milk, juice, wine, and broth. You can flatten boxes to save room in your cart. And as to pizza boxes, the lids can be recycled. The bottoms can be recycled only if they do not have any food residue on them.
• Plastic: Only plastic containers that are labeled #1-7 within the recycle triangle on the bottom are suitable for your recycle bin. Lids can be on or off. Do not attempt to recycle plastic bags, plastic film, bubble wrap, or Styrofoam. HINT – plastic bags/bubble wrap and foam egg/food trays can be recycled at Publix.
• Glass: All green, brown and clear glass bottles and jars can be recycled. Glass vases, dishes, lightbulbs, windows, or mirrors are not recyclable in the curbside program.
Here’s what happens when you put unacceptable items, such as plastic bags, clothing or Styrofoam, in your bin. The items are collected from the curb, transported to the Material Recovery Facility, sorted, rejected, loaded, transported again, and finally disposed of. In addition, plastic bags, hoses and ropes often jam the recycling sorting equipment, causing it to shut down. After clearing the jammed items, the equipment must be manually re-started. Lee County estimates an extra cost of $25,000-$30,000 per month to handle unacceptable items from the curbside recycling program, a cost we all incur.
And please, don’t use plastic bags to dispose of your yard waste. Yard waste in paper bags or waste cans can easily be turned into mulch or compost that decomposes, preserving the environment and reducing the need for landfill space.
About 92 percent of Lee County residents put their yard waste in paper bags or waste cans. Join them!
Lee County’s recycling website (http://www.leegov.com/solidwaste/recycling provides lots of information to help us all participate in our weekly recycling program effectively and efficiently. If you can’t find an answer to your question on the website, Lee County encourages you to contact their Customer Service reps at 239-533-8000.
Let’s all do our part to recycle the right way – Recycle Smart, 5 for the Cart.
