Tue, 17 May 2005 06:04:05 
Interesting information on county recycling

I got this article from the County about recycling
plastic.  I thought it was interesting so I thought I
would pass this on.  I notice every Monday morning
when I walk to work a lot of plastic in the recycle
bins that can not be recycled.  People are going to a
lot of effort to cleaning out plastic jars, yogurt
contains, etc that Montgomery County does not recycle.
This causes problems since all of that needs to be
removed by hand at the recycle center.  So if you are
interested in actually helping the environment, please
read this.

Ed


THIS MONTH's FEATURE: Plastic Recycling
Montgomery County wants them all -- your plastic
bottles, that is. All plastic bottles with narrow
necks are accepted in your blue bin; many people
mistakenly think we are still limited to certain resin
numbers. The color of the bottle, and the resin number
stamped on it in the "recycling triangle" don't
matter. 

Summer's a great time to boost your recycling efforts:
quenching those summer thirsts generates lots of
bottles! Recycle wherever you go. Many beverages are
consumed "on the road" -- in cars, on sports fields,
and other locations -- and the empty bottles end up in
the trash.

The County doesn't accept "wide-mouthed" containers,
such as yogurt cups and take-out plastics. While these
items go into the trash, they don't go to waste; when
trash is burned at our Resource Recovery Facility,
energy from the fires is captured to generate
electricity.

What's special about plastic bottles with necks? They
are formed by a different molding process than
containers without necks. Generally, these two
categories of plastics cannot be mixed together during
the recycling process; the resulting "soup" would not
be suitable for new products made by either type of
molding.

And what about those recycling numbers? Most plastic
containers are stamped with that little triangle of
arrows with a number inside it. The number refers only
to the type of plastic resin used for that container.
It does not mean that the container is accepted for
recycling. These codes were developed by the Society
for the Plastics Industry simply to identify resin
types to processors.

Plastic recycling is not limited to the kitchen.
Remember plastic bottles from your bathroom and
laundry area, too. Accepted bottles with necks include
those from: foods, beverages, shampoo, and laundry
detergent, to name a few. Please, no bottles that have
held hazardous products, including: automotive fluids,
herbicides, pesticides.

For more information about plastic resins, visit the
American Plastics Council at www.plasticsresource.com.

For more information about recycling and waste
reduction in Montgomery County:
www.montgomerycountymd.gov/solidwaste;
recycle@montgomerycountymd.gov; 240-777-6410; 
TTY: 240-777-6442