What's the number one thing you can do to help your city or town properly recycle items you set out for curbside collection?

DO NOT BAG YOUR RECYCLABLES & 

DO NOT PUT ANY FLEXIBLE PACKAGING LIKE BAGS IN YOUR CART!

Always drop off clean and dry flexible plastics (bags, films, wraps) to retailers for proper collection and processing. Bagging recyclables create three challenges for processing facilities:

• Damage Equipment: Bags tangle in sorting machines, resulting in costly downtime.
• Increase Expenses: Removing bags and other unacceptable materials at the Mecklenburg County sorting facility costs $1.9 million per year.
• End Up in the Landfill: Anything in a plastic bag must be removed from the processing line quickly and is sent to the landfill.

Well-meaning residents sorting their waste may not realize their recyclables are ending up in the landfill, because it’s bagged. Recyclable items must be placed in the cart loose, clean, and dry.

Thank you for Recycling Right!

More information in Mecklenburg County: www.wipeoutwaste.com

This information is valid nationwide, very few cities or towns have advanced recycling sorting equipment that can handle tanglers like plastic bags, ropes, cords, hoses etc.