Okay, you asked for it,
you got it: plastic bag recycling. After more than a decade of
dedicated recyclers asking us to please, please take newspaper
bags, dry cleaner bags, and ripped plastic grocery bags that can’t
be reused, we’re finally going to say YES! BUT…before you start
pulling out that stockpile of bags you’ve been accumulating under
the sink in hopes that someday Eco-Cycle will take them, please
read the fine print. It goes like this:
The Fine Print
Eco-Cycle will accept plastic bags marked with a #2 or #4 only
(which primarily includes grocery bags, dry cleaning bags, and
newspaper bags). They MUST be clean, dry and empty, empty,
EMPTY! (please) and they will ONLY be accepted at the
Eco-Cycle/Boulder Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials (CHaRM).
So one more time, all together now: #2, #4, clean, dry, empty,
and only at the CHaRM. |
 Eco-Cycle
has long struggled with the notion of accepting plastic bags. If
there was ever a material that put the “Hard” in
“Hard-to-Recycle,” it’s plastic bags. That’s because there are so
many contamination issues associated with them. A little moisture
left in a bag can create a “runny” effect in the remanufacturing
stage that ruins the whole batch of new plastic. Receipts (so
easily left in bags) create inconsistencies in the new product.
Food waste turns into a brown liquid mess that ruins the new
plastic. Plastic bags other than #2’s and #4’s melt at a different
temperature and spoil the whole batch. Without question, it’s a
lot trickier than any other item we accept. It’s the poster child
for “Hard.”
So we asked
ourselves, can you, Boulder County recyclers, be careful enough to
ONLY give us the dry and empty bags we’re looking for? Will you be
sure to ONLY bring them to the CHaRM and not try to sneak them in
at the curb and at the drop-off centers? Given that you’re among
the most conscientious recyclers in the nation, providing some of
the cleanest materials anywhere, we decided to bet that you will.
So we’re counting on you, Boulder County.
Of course, remember
that reuse is always better than recycling. We still encourage you
to avoid plastic bags whenever you can. When you do get them,
reuse them before you recycle. (Unless you’re a dog owner reusing
newspaper bags; in that case, just reuse them and please…forgo the
recycling.)
We’re excited to
finally accept plastic bags because it’s a much needed service and
because we feel good about the new product they’ll become. We’re
processing and marketing the bags to companies that produce the
leading alternative to wood decks by using recycled plastic bags,
stretch wrap from businesses, and wood waste such as wood chips,
shavings, and sawdust. It’s an attractive decking that looks very
much like wood. It’s also splinter-free, highly weather and insect
resistant, and doesn’t require the sealants or stains wood decking
requires, preventing a lot of tiresome work and the use of
hazardous chemicals. It’s far more durable than wood decking and
leaves those trees standing where they belong. There’s a high
demand for clean plastic bags since plastic lumber decking is
catching on in popularity and marine docks in the U.S. are being
converted to plastic lumber.
If you’re interested
in “closing the loop” and buying plastic lumber potentially made
from plastic bags you recycle at the CHaRM, you can purchase it
from environmental construction suppliers like Eco-Products in
Boulder, as well as from any lumber supplier in Boulder County.
Just ask for recycled plastic or composite lumber.
We’re putting
ourselves out on the edge with this new material, and taking you
with us, so we thank you in advance for helping us make this new
program successful by complying with the guidelines and recycling
these bags only at the CHaRM. If we can show that caring recyclers
will take the time to do this right, we’ll feel even better about
adding the NEXT material accepted at the CHaRM. Stay tuned, it’s
our goal to add at least one new item each year.
One more thing:
clean, dry, empty, #2, #4, and only at the CHaRM. Did we say that
yet?
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