A friend called my recycling habits 'wish-cycling' and it stung

She pointed out that my blue bin was full of greasy pizza boxes and plastic bags, which actually mess up the whole sorting process at the plant. I had no idea that putting the wrong stuff in could mean a whole truckload gets sent to the landfill. So now I keep a list on my fridge of what our local facility in Madison actually takes. It's a small fix, but it feels better knowing I'm not accidentally making things worse... anyone else get called out on this and change their routine?

2 comments

2 Comments

wren_rodriguez2mo ago

Wait, your local plant won't take glass anymore? That's wild to me. Glass is one of the few things you can actually melt down and reuse forever. I can't believe they'd stop taking it. It makes me wonder what they're doing with all the other materials if they cut out something that basic. That has to be so frustrating for everyone trying to do the right thing.

coleman.jamie2mo ago

Good on you for fixing it. That list on the fridge is the way to go. The rules change so much by city it's crazy. My local plant won't take glass anymore, which threw me for a loop. Getting it right matters because one contaminated bin can ruin a whole batch of good material.