Recycling

The DOs and DON'Ts of Recycling

Statewide 2018

  • DO rinse recyclables clean. They don't have to be perfect, just no stuck on food.
  • DO breakdown and fold cardboard boxes.
  • DO pay attention to size! Anything under two (2) inches is too small to be caught in our recycling facilities.
  • DON'T place plastic bags in the recycling bin. Even if they have a recycling symbol on them it is NOT recyclable in zero-sort, but check these locations for bag recycling.
  • DON'T put anything with food residue in the bin. Think about it, a greasy pizza box covered in sauce, cheese and bread does not make very great paper products.
  • DON'T place Styrofoam into recycling. It is very hard to recycle and can not be handled in Vermont facilities.

WHY RECYCLE?

The main reason of recycling is to conserve energy, help the environment, reduce pollution, slow global climate change and lower waste products in landfills. By recycling, people can have something to do with the earth's overall health and keep the air, water and land clean.

In Vermont, recyclables were banned from the landfill in 2015 but residents are still throwing recyclables away in the garbage. Some even throw their garbage into Zero Sort believing 'anything is recyclable because it gets sorted. This is not correct. Zero Sort does make it so you don't have to sort, but it's meant only for recyclables, not garbage. Please put your garbage in the garbage bin and recycling in the recycling bin.

Recycling can be made very simple.  Keep a recycling bin next to your garbage can for convenience. We have blue bins for $7 at the RCSWD office. In college it is helpful to keep a plastic bag for recycling next to the garbage. That way you can carry them out and then reuse the bag afterwords.  

Items such as paint cans, batteries, aerosol cans, old or never been used oil, gasoline, household cleaners, automotive fluids, rat poison are also recyclable, but not in the same place. Instead, they are treated as Household Hazardous Waste (HHW). They can be brought to the Transfer Station on Gleason Road in Rutland by making an appointment or you can check our Rural Collection Schedule to see when we'll be in your town for a collection day.

Some businesses will accept batteries for recycling in their store. See what stores in your town accept batteries here.

Check out Paintcare.org to see if a store near you accepts paint to be recycled.