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For many, environmentalism begins with the recycling symbol and ends at the recycling bin. Unfortunately, this act of throwing something away into a box with a recycling sign is enough to make some of us feel like we’ve done our part. In actuality, the Michigan Recycling Coalition reports that Michigan's recycling rate is only 18.1% while the national recycling rate stands at 34%. So why aren't people recycling? Common issues are lack of convenient access and proper information regarding recycling. A quote from Dr. Paul Gilman, chief sustainability officer at Covanta, highlights this issue more, “While done with good intentions, many Americans are practicing aspirational recycling – tossing things into recycling bins that they think should be recycled, rather than what can be recycled. This practice has led to the contamination of recyclables and a crisis in the market.” For that reason, it is vitally important to understand your community’s recycling guidelines. Therefore, I am going to provide information and suggestions so we can understand the recycling system better and start recycling with ease.

A recent Greenpeace report found that some #1 and #2 plastic bottles are the only types of plastic that are truly recyclable in the U.S. today; and yet only 29 percent of these bottles are collected for recycling. Of this, only 21 percent of the bottles are made into recycled materials due to contamination. Because recycling is a business with a product that is vulnerable to the ups and downs of commodities markets, sometimes it’s cheaper for packagers to make things out of raw, virgin plastic than it is to buy recycled plastic. That's why it is essential for us to clean out any plastic material with food residues on (or in), because it CANNOT be recycled. For plastics to be transformed into recycled goods, they must be of decent quality. So, what can we do? Wash then recycle. Wash your plastics after using so they have a chance to be recycled into new material.

Flexible packaging such as potato chip bags are made from layers of different types of plastic and often are lined with aluminum. It’s not possible to easily separate the layers and capture the desired resin.

Plastic bags, like those used for bread, newspapers, and as cereal box liners, as well as sandwich bags, dry cleaning bags and grocery bags create similar problems for recycling machinery as thin plastic film. However, bags and wrappers, like those that come around paper towels, can be returned to the grocery store for recycling. Thin plastic film cannot. That is why it is so important to properly recycle these items. Did you know there are approximately 18,000 plastic bag drop-off bins at major grocery store chains, including Meijer, Walmart, and Target, around the country? These retailers send the plastic to recyclers, who use the material in other products.

Why is this so hard? Shouldn't we be able to recycle all plastic? The sad reality of today is that, just because something is plastic, doesn't mean it can be recycled. I always thought that the trucks haul your recyclables to a facility where machines and workers sort and separate paper, metal, glass, and plastic. But the truth is, most of these sorting companies sell those recyclables into a global market. Sadly, recycling in the U.S. is governed by local rules and often handled by private companies who recycle for a profit. Recycling guidelines can seem so particular because each facility is run differently. They have different equipment and unique markets for their plastic, and those markets are constantly evolving.

How can we help as citizens who have nothing to do with these companies? In 2020 more than 37 states were considering over 250 bills to deal with plastic pollution and recycling, according to the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators. These include bans on single-use plastic including bags and food ware, and polystyrene bans. We can support bottle bills to hold producers responsible for product disposal and other recycling laws. We must write to our representatives detailing our support for these bills.

Senator Tom Udall and Congressman Alan Lowenthal recently introduced the Break Free From Plastic Act into Congress. The bill includes bans on single-use plastic bags and requires manufacturers of packaging and food ware to be responsible for their waste collection. A national container deposit system would charge a refundable deposit on all single-use beverage bottles, standardized labeling on recycling bins, and suspend permits for the building of new plastic-producing plants. This would be a great step forward to fixing the recycling system in America.

Eight states have bans on single-use plastic bags. Jennie Romer, founder of PlasticBagLaws.org, says that hybrid bans that ban thin plastic carryout bags and impose a charge for paper or any other bags are the most effective. Chicago’s hybrid ban cut plastic bag use in half; and in San Jose, a ban with a 10-cent charge for paper bags led to an increase in reusable bag use from 4 percent to 62 percent. On March 1, 2020, NYC instituted a plastic bag ban charging 5 cents for a paper carry out bag. Other states are implementing solutions, why not Michigan? Unfortunately, in 2016, legislation overturned the previous tax on plastic bags. Therefore, the time to act is now, write your legislator, bring your own reusable bags, and if you must use plastic- take them back to the appropriate recycling center.

I am asking you, not just my community, but people of Earth to take responsibility for our enormous plastic waste problem. Many Americans aren’t recycling because of lack of access and proper information. To check the availability of recycling centers in your area use the website Earth911. For residents of the East Lansing area, the City of East Lansing Website has many resources detailing what you can recycle, when and where to take your recycling, and answers to any other questions you may have about the process. We need to increase awareness and empower individuals, businesses, communities, and nations to be part of the solution by making smart and sustainable choices. The steps outlined below are great concrete steps to help improve your environmentalism, that will benefit the planet.

• Learn which recycling symbols correspond to which types of plastic so you know what is recyclable

• Understand what items and materials your community recycles

• Keep a recycling bin handy

• Rinse out bottles, cans, and food containers before recycling

• Buy recycled products or items incorporating recycled material

• Buy and store products in jars, not plastic containers

• Buy the biggest size possible and apportion it out at home

• Shop farmers’ markets and bulk food items

• Store produce in reusable produce bags

• Urge your representatives to introduce waste-reducing legislation

• Don’t buy single-use items

Ask yourself which one of these steps you can take today to help make your community, and hopefully the world, a better place.

References:

Cho, Renee. “Recycling in the U.S. Is Broken. How Do We Fix It?” State of the Planet, Columbia Climate School, 8 Dec. 2020, https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2020/03/13/fix-recycling-america/.

“Plastics: What's Recyclable, What Becomes Trash - and Why.” NPR, NPR, 21 Aug. 2019, https://apps.npr.org/plastics-recycling/.

Ravenhall, Lucy. “Why Can't All Plastic Be Recycled?” The Waste Management & Recycling Blog, Forge Waste and Recycling, 14 Sept. 2018,

https://www.forgerecycling.co.uk/blog/why-cant-all-plastic-be-recycled/.

Sedaghat, Lilly. “7 Things You Didn't Know about Plastic (and Recycling).” National Geographic Society Newsroom, National Geographic , 13 Apr. 2018, https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2018/04/04/7-things-you-didnt-know-about-plastic-and-recycling/.