by Asha Kreiling
When the employee at the grocery store asks if you would like paper or plastic bags, the best answer is “Neither!” One of the simplest and best things you can do to reduce waste and the impact you have on the environment is to use reusable bags. The challenge, however, may be remembering to bring them. Disposable plastic bags and wraps are ubiquitous in American consumerism, and even if we make an effort to avoid excessive packaging or plastic products, they tend to accumulate in our homes nevertheless. The curbside recycle programs in the County of San Diego do not accept plastic bags in curbside recycling bins due to their have low value and they are not cost-effective to recycle. Furthermore, plastic bags can get stuck in collection and processing equipment, creating a hazard for the recycling process. Fortunately, other methods of recycling plastic bags exist!
Many grocery stores and large retailers, such as VONS and Whole Foods, have recycling bins specifically for plastic bags near the entrance of their stores. Most bags are recycled into plastic products such as composite lumber or post-consumer resin, which is used to make various products–like new bags!
And not just regular grocery bags can be recycled; a host of other plastic bags and wraps can be brought back to the same drop-off locations to be recycled along with grocery bags:
- newspaper bags
- dry cleaning bags
- bread bags
- produce bags
- toilet paper, napkin, and paper towel wraps
- furniture wrap
- electronic wrap
- plastic food storage bags (i.e. Ziploc bags)
- plastic cereal box liners
- Tyvek (i.e. House wrap or certain mail envelopes)
- diaper wrap
- plastic shipping envelopes (no bubble wrap/remove labels)
- case wrap (snacks, water bottles)
- ice bags
- all clean, dry bags labeled #2 or #4
Bags that cannot be recycled include food or cling wrap, prepackaged food bags like frozen food bags or prewashed salad bags and bio-based or compostable bags. All recyclable bags must be clean and dry without glue or labels.
For the times that we forget our cloth bags and are faced with the only other option of plastic, or when we feel guilty about throwing away so much material that never breaks down, we can make up for it simply by recycling plastic bags and wrap at your nearest drop-off location.
To read more or to find drop-off locations for plastic bags, check out http://www.plasticbagrecycling.org/plasticbag/s01_consumers.html
Beginning in October, Mission Beach residents will receive curbside recycling services. Mission Beach residents will receive a postcard by mail that needs to be sent back filled out by June 18th for them to receive a free recycling bin.
