So much for 'recycling'.

[bucktalk]

Apparently you are no longer allowed to place glass, plastic or foil in the recycle bins in Edmond. Sort of makes you not even mess with recycling.

[jerrywall]

Apparently you are no longer allowed to place glass, plastic or foil in the recycle bins in Edmond. Sort of makes you not even mess with recycling.

Glass has never been allowed. I know you're only supposed to only plastics #1 and #2 (the ones with the recycling arrow on them). Have they said no plastics altogether now?

The trouble with foil is that it's almost always soiled (because it's so commonly used as food wrap. Theoretically they can process the foil, if everyone was putting clean, usable/recyclable foil in the bins. But I expect they don't want it due to simplicity.

All this being said... the recycle pickup is done with a large truck, and they don't really look in the bins since the truck does all the dumping. I know I've had mine picked up with stuff in there that shouldn't be (the joys of kids).

(I also don't rinse out my cans before crushing them and recycling them...)

Did Edmond send out an update or something?

[emtefury]

Don't worry as most recycling will end up in the landfill anyway. Recycling is not cost effective and China stopped buying our recyclables. Many cities and towns are just trowing recycling in the landfill. We have plenty of land for landfills. Recycling just helps us feel morally superior.

[bucktalk]

It seems dishonest for cities to charge extra for recycle bins when most of the trash just goes to a landfill.

[BBatesokc]

Glass has never been allowed. ....

Glass has been allowed in Edmond previously for a long time. Just needed to be clean; jars, bottles.

[Edmond Hausfrau]

Don't worry as most recycling will end up in the landfill anyway. Recycling is not cost effective and China stopped buying our recyclables. Many cities and towns are just trowing recycling in the landfill. We have plenty of land for landfills. Recycling just helps us feel morally superior.

I was with you right up until last 2 sentences. Everyone likes to feel like they are doing their part, but I don't think that equals moral superiority. Just because we can bury waste doesn't mean we wouldn't like to see a better alternative.

[jerrywall]

Glass has been allowed in Edmond previously for a long time. Just needed to be clean; jars, bottles.

Huh. I remember years ago back when we still had the small tubs that glass wasn't allowed. I wasn't aware that they had started to allow it.

[BBatesokc]

Huh. I remember years ago back when we still had the small tubs that glass wasn't allowed. I wasn't aware that they had started to allow it.

I don't know how long it's actually been allowed, but you can look back on old cached version of Edmond's website and it says clean glass bottles are allowed.

To me, it's just becoming too narrowly defined what we can and cannot recycle via the blue can.

I'm gonna have mine picked up and opt out.

[PaddyShack]

So are there places in the OKC area that you can take any and all materials for recycle and those places actually recycle the goods in some form?

[gopokes88]

Don't worry as most recycling will end up in the landfill anyway. Recycling is not cost effective and China stopped buying our recyclables. Many cities and towns are just trowing recycling in the landfill. We have plenty of land for landfills. Recycling just helps us feel morally superior.

Bingo

[LordGerald]

Don't worry as most recycling will end up in the landfill anyway. Recycling is not cost effective and China stopped buying our recyclables. Many cities and towns are just trowing recycling in the landfill. We have plenty of land for landfills. Recycling just helps us feel morally superior.

This problem is not going away. It would be a good story to see what cities are actually doing in the 405.

https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/3...an-on-recycles

[dankrutka]

This problem is not going away. It would be a good story to see what cities are actually doing in the 405.

https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/3...an-on-recycles

I was just about to post this link. Lol. Here's a link to straight to their video on the topic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK20t11He14

[emtefury]

I was with you right up until last 2 sentences. Everyone likes to feel like they are doing their part, but I don't think that equals moral superiority. Just because we can bury waste doesn't mean we wouldn't like to see a better alternative.

It was a little tongue in cheek.

[amocore]

I have been recycling glasses bottle for forty years. It is pretty easy. OKC take them with paper and plastic.
I keep my Alu can separated. It is easy to recycle and you can sell directly them too.

[LordGerald]

This problem is not going away. It would be a good story to see what cities are actually doing in the 405.

https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/3...an-on-recycles

Another great story. This is getting serious...

https://getpocket.com/explore/item/t...=pocket-newtab

[jedicurt]

Another great story. This is getting serious...

https://getpocket.com/explore/item/t...=pocket-newtab

it really makes me curious what the cost is for a recycling plant for plastic in the USA, and if current EPA regulations would even allow for one to even be built.

[Bill Robertson]

I don’t want to throw anyone under a bus so I won’t say who we use. But a year or so ago I started noticing that the trucks that pick up our recycling dumpster at work are the regular trash trucks and not the recycling trucks. I wonder if recycling is becoming so expensive or ? that its on its way out.

[TheTravellers]

I don’t want to throw anyone under a bus so I won’t say who we use. But a year or so ago I started noticing that the trucks that pick up our recycling dumpster at work are the regular trash trucks and not the recycling trucks. I wonder if recycling is becoming so expensive or ? that its on its way out.

FWIW, the regular house pickups in OKC are by both recycling trucks and solid waste trucks.

[Scott5114]

I don't think it's useful to fearmonger with "Some cities are throwing away their recycling!" Some cities? Which cities? If it's not any in the central Oklahoma area, all you're doing is convincing people to eliminate any chance of getting their waste recycled, ensuring that stuff ends up in the landfill anyway. What's the point of trying to convince people of that, especially since putting something in a blue trash can is exactly the same amount of effort as putting it in a green one?

Norman contracts out its recycling to a firm called Republic Services. As I understand it, the business model for companies like this is to sort, package, and sell the raw material to other companies to actually do the recycling ("we will sell you a pallet of X pounds of raw paper ready for recycling"). A company like that is going to try to minimize the amount of waste that gets diverted to the landfill, because that's lost revenue. If anything can be packaged and resold, they are going to want to do it.

Glass is a very easily recycled material, but of course it breaks. This can lead to glass shards contaminating paper, plastic, and aluminum, lowering the resale value of these materials. As a result, glass is frequently excluded from recycling programs. Norman currently accepts glass, however.

It's worth noting that the problems with recycling only apply to plastic, and that is only because there is such a large number of varieties of plastic that cannot be intermixed, and cost-effective ways to sort them are the biggest challenge. Paper and aluminum recycling is very cost-effective (and paper is of course biodegradable if it can't be recycled). As a result, I try my best to shift consumption to aluminum and paper when at all possible (choosing aluminum cans for beverages instead of plastic, paper bags instead of plastic when I don't have a reusable one on me, etc).

[LakeEffect]

Norman contracts out its recycling to a firm called Republic Services. As I understand it, the business model for companies like this is to sort, package, and sell the raw material to other companies to actually do the recycling ("we will sell you a pallet of X pounds of raw paper ready for recycling"). A company like that is going to try to minimize the amount of waste that gets diverted to the landfill, because that's lost revenue. If anything can be packaged and resold, they are going to want to do it.

Edmond's contractor is Republic, and they're the ones saying that all glass and plastics (except 1 & 2) are now not cost or carbon-effective to recycle. I'd anticipate Norman making changes in the future too.

If one is really concerned for the environment, push for eliminating as much single-use plastic (and glass) in your life as possible. Internationally, and in island communities like Hawaii, that is the next frontier. No need for recycling if you can just reuse the packaging through safe means. https://www.usnews.com/news/best-sta...e-use-plastics

[jompster]

Honolulu has facilities to burn waste to generate electricity. It's probably more useful there since it's an island and land space is limited.

[LakeEffect]

Honolulu has facilities to burn waste to generate electricity. It's probably more useful there since it's an island and land space is limited.

True, they do use it for that, but even then they're trying to get away from burning anything for power; still produces emissions.

Reusable containers are the next frontier, minimizing the need for recycling in the first place. https://www.forbes.com/sites/annefie.../#4d26eabe209a