TIL my neighborhood recycling center actually dumps half of what I sort

I spent 2 years carefully washing and sorting plastics by number. Then I talked to a guy who works at the center near Oak Park. He told me they only accept #1 and #2 bottles there because the sorting machine is broken. Everything else goes straight to the landfill. That was back in March and it made me rethink my whole system. Now I just focus on reducing single-use stuff instead. Has anyone else found out their local center does something like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

benflores29d ago

Recycling is still better than trashing everything" - not when your local center dumps half of it, man. That "better" part depends entirely on the facility actually doing what theyre supposed to. I live near a small town and found out ours only takes #1 plastics period. Anything else goes right in the dumpster out back. Felt like such a waste of time washing and sorting all those yogurt cups for nothing. Now I just put everything in the regular bin and try to buy less plastic overall. Its depressing but at least Im not lying to myself anymore.

iris_jones8929d ago

Recycling is still better than trashing everything even if some places mess up lol