Ok I know what you’re thinking “I know how to recycle, it isn’t that hard” but the truth is, only about 9% of our collective recycled materials in the United States last year were actually recycled! Yes, part of that is based on the system we live in and the lack of sustainability being prioritized by our government, but another part is based on how we consumers actually recycle. 

Therefore, this post is going to focus on what we can control and shift right now! We do need to fight for a more sustainably minded world and urge policy makers to prioritize our earths health, but we also have some changes we need to make on an individual level.  

Glass Vs. Plastic 

First things first… I often have people asking me questions about whether they should buy plastic or glass containers when they are at the store. For example, if you are buying a one serving beverage at the grocery store and one brand is a plastic bottle and the other is glass, it can be hard to know which is the lesser of two evils. 

The hard truth is that they both have their cons and it’s a decision of which con you can live with if you must buy this item. Plastic bottles, as we all know, are riddling our planet. They are in the deepest depths of the ocean and in the most remote corners of the jungle. Plastic is not biodegradable and does not break down easily, however, it does trap heat and release smaller microplastics. 

As the plastic emits heat, it contributes to our warming climate, the ocean heating up, and an abundance of issues that follow suit, such as compromised animal (including human) health. On the other hand, plastic is easy to produce. When being made in a factory, plastic takes very little energy and therefore, is not responsible for nearly the amount of greenhouse gas emissions as glass. 

Glass takes more energy to create and therefore is responsible for more emissions. So yes, both of these materials are contributing to a changing climate in their own way, there is no doubt about that. We often justify our use of plastic bottles by saying “well, I recycle them!” However, that simply is not valid reasoning anymore, and here’s why. 

There are seven different types of plastic. All of which are recycled independently and cannot be intermixed. This is roadblock #1. In addition, items cannot be recycled unless they are clean and dry… roadblock #2.

Where glass has its time to shine is in the fact that, there is only one type of glass and therefore, it is easier to recycle! By removing the need for glass to be sorted, it is more readily recycled in comparison to plastic which must be separated by plastic type.  

This infographic gives some brief information, however, at the end of this post you will find a more in depth graphic!

Ok So… Glass Or Plastic?!

Maybe now you’re unsure of which one you should be buying because both options sound terrible! While I am tempted to say, buy neither, this is not always an option. Instead, weigh the pros and cons. Yes, glass takes more energy to make and produces more carbon emissions, however, it is easier to use over and over again.

With many glass bottles, you may be able to use them time and time again until you finally recycle them. This makes it worth it because you are buying one item rather than several to fill its place. In that case, the smaller carbon footprint of the carbon multiplied by the number of bottles you went through likely creates higher emissions than if you used a single glass bottle for multiple uses. 

In addition, since it is more likely your glass will actually be recycled rather than polluting the earth and breaking down into microplastics that can pollute waterways, drinking water, crops, and get into our bodies, I generally prefer using glass over plastic. 

The point of this whole explanation though, was to remind you that every single item we use or buy has an impact that we may not be aware of. It’s not always about never buying anything with an impact (because that’s impossible), but rather maximizing the items we do use so that we are putting less stress on the earth. 

Common Mistakes

As I previously mentioned, a huge mistake I see often is that we are not thoroughly cleaning and drying out containers before recycling them. For example, if you have a tub of cream cheese and it has residue in it, you cannot just throw it in the bin like that. It won’t get recycled. At that point, you may as well just be throwing it away with the rest of your trash because it will end up in the landfill. 

Not only that, but say you clean every container before recycling but today you got lazy and didn’t clean one before throwing it in. Now that entire bin is contaminated, and nothing will be recycled. Just because of that one item that you failed to clean. This is why so many items never truly get recycled.  

Another common mistake is failing to separate your plastic. When I was younger people would tell me to throw the plastic bottle away separately from its cap, I did it but I had no idea why. If you’ve ever heard such a thing, here’s why. On one item, there could be different types of plastics on each component. And like I said, different types of plastic cannot be melted down and recycled together, and nobody is going to separate your plastic types for you down the line in the recycling process.

So, if you have a detergent bottle it could be that the bottle and the cap are made of two different plastic types. If you throw that in the recycle as one piece, your entire bin won’t be recycled because that one item was not separated. Because nobody at a recycling center has time to sort through and separate every single person’s recycled materials before it can be recycled. Instead, they just throw it in the landfill. 

If you are making one of these common mistakes and sometimes find yourself thinking “it’s ok that I have so much waste because I recycle” the truth is, you don’t recycle. It is likely that not a single item you have ever used has actually been recycled… I know. It hurts to hear, but this is exactly why our landfills are out of control and our recycling rate is so low. 

How To Change Your Habits

If this is upsetting or mind-blowing that you never knew this until now, I get it! But here are the steps you should take every time you are about to throw something in the recycle:

1. Clean and dry thoroughly (even run it through the dishwasher if you aren’t confident in your handwash skills!)

2. Look at your item and determine if it has any pieces that come off

   1. Yes, this includes the little ring on the top of water bottles that the cap is attached to, take that thing off!

3. Remove anything that is removable from the item and throw them in the recycling bin

4. Repeat knowing that you are a recycling pro!

While much of our recycled materials simply aren’t recycled due to the institutions and systems we are ruled by, following these steps will maximize the chance that any of your waste can be reused. 

Don’t Rely On Others For Your Recycling

The last tip I will suggest is that, if you can, wait and throw your recyclables away at your home. Not only because then you can clean and dry them, but also because so many public places and institutions (while they do have separate recycle and trash) simply combine the bins to dispose of the trash.

Therefore, regardless of what you’ve done right, there is no way around the fact that there are careless people who are looking for things to be easy, rather than making them right. So whenever possible, take your items home where you know they will have the highest possible chance of actually being recycled. 

Recycling won’t solve all of our problems, but it can make an impact on reducing our global footprint. It is critical to take steps towards using less and maximizing what we do use or we will continue seeing our climate warm and species die off.