Stop Recycling Plastic Bottles Without Caps
Since the recycling industry is in constant flux, the rules for plastic recycling are not always set (at least in the US). First, you can’t recycle plastic bags or straws, and now black plastic is even becoming a problem. How do we know how to properly recycle?
Given the confusion, it makes sense that on a recent Reddit thread, user u / insert-quote-here advocated removing bottle caps when recycling, but here’s why this is usually the wrong move – by separating the cap from the bottle, you essentially threw it away straight into the trash.
Why? Often, when lids end up in the sorting process at a recycling plant, they are sorted due to their small size and then sent to landfills. As such, lids are now some of the most common trash found in our oceans (which also end up in the food chain when ingested by marine life).
Part of the confusion is that we think we are making it easier for recyclers by unscrewing the annoying lid, but this is actually a waste of your time and effort. Caps and bottles are often segregated in water-using objects (after shredding, they separate according to their ability to float. Caps are less dense and floatable. Bottles sink).
And caps are valuable too. They are made from polypropylene plastic , which is a coveted type of plastic among manufacturers and is used in everything from storage boxes to cutting boards, so throwing them away is a waste of an incredibly useful resource.
So how do you properly recycle your plastic water bottle? First, remove the cap and squeeze the bottle from the bottom until most of the air has been removed. Close the lid and throw the bottle into the trash can! It’s easy if you remember that these two belong together. And, as always, search the Internet for a recycling program in your hometown to find out the situation with restrictions, if your situation is a rare exception.