Of course you recycle! You’re totally doing your part to help Mother Earth, and you’re teaching the kids about the importance of being environmentally friendly. But do you know if pizza boxes can be recycled? What about milk cartons? And how clean do you need to get those jars before throwing them into the recycling bins? To help give you a little refresher, check out these 10 Do’s & Don’ts of Recycling.

–> Do’s:

• Rinse Glass and Plastic Jars. Before throwing jars and glass items into your bin, be sure to rinse them out. You don’t need to scrub them. A good rinse will do.
• Remove Grease & Food. An easy way to determine if you can recycle any paper product is to see if it has food on it. If it does, then you cannot recycle it. Look at your pizza box, if the top is free and clear of grease and cheese, tear off the lid and toss it in the recycle bin. (And note that although you cannot recycle food soiled paper, you can always compost it.)
• Recycle Junk Mail & Papers. Most junk mail can go straight into the recycle bin. And a lot of mail can go in after you read it, too. You are also allowed to throw in glossy and matte paper, so feel free to toss those magazines, posters, and even non-foil wrapping paper.
• Separate Your eWaste. Electronics and other eWaste items can be recycled, but in a separate, secure collection area away from regular recyclables. You can drop off items such as old cell phones, televisions, computers, home appliances, and batteries at the Recycle and Reuse Drop-Off Center. (Update, due to COVID-19, this Center is now closed temporariliy. Please hold on to such items to bring when it reopens.)
• Try to Reuse Items That Are Not Recyclable. There are some items that just can’t be recycled — fabrics, clothing, large metal items (like frying pans), furniture, etc. Be sure you’re passing quality items along to donation centers such as Goodwill, who can resell them. Or get creative with non-recyclables such as foam egg cartons that can be great for kids craft projects.

–> Don’ts:

• Toxic Containers. Most plastic bottles are recyclable, unless they were holding toxic stuff. Those will need to be disposed of using hazardous waste procedures. (Click here to learn where to take these items.) A few items that are on the “do not recycle” list include paint cans, oil jugs, antifreeze jugs, pesticide containers, and household cleaners.
• Milk & Juice Cartons. The City of Austin’s single stream recycling program currently does not accept these cartons (not to be confused with cardboard).
• Wire Hangers & Plastic Bags. Even though metal and plastic can be recycled, these items cannot currently be accepted. Wire hangers and thin plastic film gets jammed up in the sorting machines. You can, however, take the hangers back to the dry cleaner so they can reuse them. Most area grocery stores offer a drop-off for plastic bags.
• Yard Waste. If you’ve just done some major yard work, you might be tempted to throw tree trimmings and grass clippings into the bins, but you’ll have to save them for your designated brush pick-up date. To learn more about collection guidelines for yard trimmings and to view the pick-up schedule, click here.
• Trash In the Recycling Bin. Just a few pieces of non-recyclable garbage can make your load deemed as trash, and you may be charged an extra fee if you put trash in your recycling cart.

A few more things to keep in mind before you recycle:

• Rinse food residue off all recyclables
• Dry paper before placing it in your cart
• Crush recyclables like cans, plastic jugs and bottles
• Flatten boxboard and corrugated cardboard
• Remove any metal components from plastic items

And remember, you can mix recyclable paper, plastic, metal and glass in your blue recycling cart – no sorting required!

To learn more about Austin’s Residential Recycling Program, please click here.

Thanks for doing your part to help Austin go green!