PETS | A Tasty Little Morsel

We like to think we're doing the right thing by recycling whenever possible, but did you know that recycling incorrectly costs thousands of dollars annually. Here's excerpts from a post by Norma Jean MacPhee at CBC News...

Food residue is the No. 1 culprit for contaminating viable plastic product for markets. The top problem items landing in the garbage that should be recycled are peanut butter jars and canned tomato sauce.

People don't like to rinse those containers out because they are gooey, they are sticky and they do take a little more effort to rinse out... Some people complain cleaning those types of containers can waste water, but you can wash them along with their dishes.

Shampoo, conditioner and body-wash bottles [should be rinsed out before recycling.]

Along with the required rinsing, another big no-no is stacking tin cans or stuffing smaller plastic items into larger plastic containers, even if everything involved is recyclable....[It is best to place items loosely in your recycle bin, not stacked.]

Containers with a mixture of materials -including plastic and waxy heavy paper - are regular garbage, not recyclables.

Plastic coffee cup lids are recyclable, but the cup is garbage.