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cart card items

Starting later this year, Streets Division staff will be inspecting recycling carts at the curb before we collect them.

There are five (or six) main problems we are looking for when doing these cart checks. 

The common problems on the card that should not be in the recycling are

Here are the categories and an explanation about why they are a problem and what you should do with them instead of putting them into the recycling cart at your home:

Bad Bags

Recycling should be loose in your cart.  Why?  This helps the sorting process.  (Watch what happens to your recyclables here.)

The only exception is shredded paper, which needs to be placed into clear bags.  The bags of shredded paper needs to be tied closed, and the bags must not be larger than a basketball.

If you absolutely must bag all of your recycling, the only acceptable way to do it is to use clear bags.

Black bags, gray bags, white bags, and any other bag you cannot see through is considered trash.  These are the bag types we are looking for in the recycling carts.

Sorters at the recovery facility have to assume any bag they can't see into will contain trash, so they are pulled off the line and discarded.  They don't want to risk opening them up only to have something awful fall out. 

If you have used the wrong kind of bag, just empty out the good recyclables into the cart directly. Or, if you prefer to bag it, transfer them to a plastic bag you can see through.

 

What about putting your recyclables into paper bags?

Putting recyclables loose in the cart is best. (The only exception is shredded paper.) 

Loose is the simplest solution, especially if you don't want to use a bunch of plastic bags.

The problem with paper bags is that you can't see through them, so the sorters can't tell what is inside of them.

Paper bags by themselves are perfectly recyclable and empty paper bags belong in the recycling cart.  And, yes, paper bags might actually just rip, or dump out when they are tipped into the collection truck.  But, they also might not rip open or spill their contents.

So, are paper bags "bad"? They are in-between.  They are imperfect. They aren't a certain problem like the black, gray, and white plastic bags we find in recycling carts.  But they aren't guaranteed to work, either, because if do not rip open or spill and they wind up getting all the way to the sorters at the recovery facility and they are still completely full of recyclables, then the sorters have no choice but to remove them as trash because they can't tell what's inside the bag. 

We definitely understand the worry about recyclables spilling when carts are lifted and emptied, and there is the ingrained cultural norm of bagging up things we want to get rid of, but most recyclables should be loose the cart.  Maybe think of the cart as one big reusable bag for your recyclables (with shredded paper being an outlier).

If you have the right sized cart for the amount of recyclables you make, loose recyclables should not spill out when it is collected by the trucks. Here's a short little video that shows what it looks like when we collect a cart. You can see how the cart goes into the truck a little bit when it is lifted and dumped, so loose material should not spill out over the road so long as the cart is not overloaded.   In the video, you'll also see the cart that was emptied had a paper bag crammed full & a white plastic bag inside the cart - those aren't the best examples of what should be inside a recycling cart.

If your cart is overfull every week, then maybe swap out the cart for a larger size for free or purchase an extra one for a one-time charge.

If you want to use paper bags to carry recyclables from your home to the cart - great! Just tip the bag out into the cart and then toss in the paper bag after.

And to be perfectly clear, never put your shredded paper into paper bags, either.  You have to put shredded paper into see-through plastic bags.  That is the only way to do that.  I know many folks would rather use paper bags and write "SHREDDED PAPER" on the side, but that will not work.  The sorters need to rely on seeing clear bags of shredded paper on the conveyer belts.  They are not reading what is written on the paper bags.

 

Tanglers (ropes, hoses, plastic film, etc.)

This is a broad category of items that includes plastic wrap, grocery store bags, rope, hoses, belts, and many other similar items that are terrible for the sorting equipment at recovery facilities

They get tangled into the rollers and jam robotic vacuums.  This leads to costly down time and the facility has to shut down and unwind all of these knotted up messes created by tanglers.

What you should do with your tangler depends on the item.

Plastic bags and plastic wrap should go to a retailer for recycling and never in the green recycling cart at your home.

Other tanglers are probably trash if it cannot be donated, but you are welcome to contact us for assistance.

 

Clothes / Textiles

Clothes, bedding, and curtains also jam sorting equipment that separates the bottles, cans, cardboard and other good household recyclables that should be in your cart.  These are basically tanglers, too.

Never place clothes or textiles into the green recycling cart.

The good news is that there are a lot of local options on where you can take your textiles and clothes.

If you are worried that what you have may not be able to be sold again, check with the place where you would like to donate items about what happens to items they can't sell.  You may be surprised to learn that many of the clothes and textiles donated locally that cannot be sold do find other uses as industrial rags or filling to punching bags and other possible uses as well.   

 

Wood / Lumber

Lumber and other wood products do not belong in the recycling cart. 

This kind of material can damage the sorting equipment at the recovery facility.

If you want your lumber or wood products to be beneficially reused, you have to take it to a Streets Division drop-off site and place it into the wood bin. 

We do not recycle the wood products into paper.  The wood products we receive are ground up, and then used as road base at the landfill campus.

 

Styrofoam

Never put styrofoam in the green recycling cart. 

The sorting equipment will destroy these containers and fling the little plastic pellets all over other good recyclables, contaminating other materials.

If you want to recycle styrofoam, you must bring it to a drop-off site. 

Styrofoam collected at the drop-off sites is not mixed in with all of the other recyclables we collect. 

We gather all of the styrofoam into giant bags and then haul all of them to Reynolds Urethane Recycling on the east side of Madison where it is processed.

If you do not want to bring styrofoam to a drop-off site, then it belongs in the trash.

 

Other Problems

Cart inspectors are also looking for any other obvious problems that should not be in the recycling cart. 

For example, televisions do not belong in the recycling cart.  You have to take them to a drop-off site. 

The cart inspectors will be on the look out for any of these rare and obvious problems while checking the carts. 

And, whatever this other problem item may be, they will note it on the card so residents should remove it from the recycling cart. 

If you are unsure what to do with these items, please contact us for help and we will let you know what to do.

 

What to do if your recycling cart is CARDED

You're not alone in this situation.  And the solution is easy.

Just remove the problem item or items from the recycling cart then contact the Streets Division for the next steps. 

We'll get it set up to come back to collect the fixed recycling cart as soon as we can. Most of the time we will be back the next work day after you call us to empty the corrected recycling cart. 

 

why recycling right matters

Per a 2023 sort of the recyclables, approximately 18.6% of the material that is put in Madison's green recycling carts should not be there.

This material is removed at the recycling plant and sent to the landfill. This misplaced trash costs Madison taxpayers thousands of dollars. 

And, in some cases, the wrong material can be dangerous and it can cause significant damage to the facilities that sort the materials.


Use the information available to be sure you, your roommates, your family, and coworkers are recycling right. 

Check out the video that shows how your recycling is sorted. That will help you better understand why some of these items below are not accepted and are a problem in the recycling system.

Below are some of the mistakes folks make when putting things into their recycling.

 

Other Common recycling mistakes

Putting Full Boxes in the Cart

You must empty and flatten your cardboard boxes before putting them into the recycling.

A lot of packing material cannot be recycled.

You are also using up too much space within your recycling cart when you don't collapse your boxes and empty them out.  This makes it harder for you to fit other recyclables inside the cart.

 

Putting the Wrong Kind of Glass in the Cart

Drinking glasses, baking dishes, windows, light bulbs, and other glass items do not belong in your recycling cart.

Only bottles and jars can be placed into your recycling.

Why? Bottles & jars melt at different temperatures than other types of glass.  And you can't separate the other types of glass out from bottles & jar glass once it's all mixed together.  Here's a long video about glass bottle making from a bottle manufacturer if you're interested to learn more about the process.

 

Putting Items that are Too Small in the Cart

If the item is smaller than a standard sticky note, then it should go into the trash.

Small things like bottle caps, or loose shredded paper, fall in with the glass.

Why? It has to do with how the sorting equipment works.  Anything smaller than a sticky note is designed to fall into the glass sorting area.  And then the company that processes the glass has to clean it again.

 

Full Bottles & Cans

The recycling sorting system is designed to move empty containers through the system. 

If you put in things that are not empty, like a half-full pop bottle, you make are causing two problems. 

First, whatever is inside your container could burst out of the bottle or can and sling all over good clean recyclables. 

And second, since the system is meant to move empty containers, your full bottle weighs more than an empty one.  This means it will bounce through the system in a way that it's not meant to and it may get sorted incorrectly - on top of it being being full of beans, pop, or whatever else that doesn't belong.

 

Having Your Cart Lids Open at the Curb is a Mistake

When you leave your cart lids open, it leaves the material inside exposed to rain and snow. 

This can ruin paper products. 

Please keep the lids on your cart closed.

 

 

PROBLEM PLASTICS

Not everything plastic belongs in your recycling cart.

Only put the right kind of plastic containers in your cart.

 

Plastic Buckets (Kitty Litter Buckets, Etc.)

They are too big for the recycling cart. An empty milk jug is about the largest plastic container you would want to put into the recycling cart.

If they are in good shape and you cannot reuse it, take them to the one of the drop-off sites. We reuse those buckets for our battery recycling program.  If they are broken, put them into the trash.

 

Flat Plastics

Flat items get sorted with paper and cardboard. If you put a flat plastic thing into your recycling cart (like a CD or a gift card) that gets mixed into the paper products where it does not belong. Do not place flat plastic items into your cart.

 

Rigid Plastics

Buckets, flower pots, toys, and other rigid plastic items do not belong in your cart.

Only put the correct plastic containers into the recycling.

 

Wrong Kind of Plastic Cups

Most common plastic cups, like the popular red ones Toby Keith sang about, are made from #6 plastic and do not belong in your recycling cart.  These brittle plastic cups shatter easily and the shards get mixed in with good recyclable glass.

Cups that are made from #1, #2, and #5 plastic are okay if they are empty, clean, and dry.

If reusable cups are not an option for you and your gathering, there are also aluminum options that are a little more expensive but are also perfectly recyclable.

 

Plastic 6-pack Rings

Do not put these into your recycling cart. The clip-on style six-pack rings are too flat to go into your recycling cart because they will act like paper. Some liquor stores or tap rooms (or possibly even home brewers) may accept them for recycling or reuse. Traditional six-pack rings also belong in the trash.

 

Plastic Insulation

Some meal preparation kit deliveries come with plastic insulation that goes into your trash.

This cannot go into your recycling cart.

Sure, the insulation may say to put it in your recycling cart, but that labeling is wrong for the City of Madison program.

 

Plastic Cutlery

These items are too flat for your cart.

 

Other Random Plastic Stuff

Just because it's plastic doesn't mean it's recyclable in the cart at your home.

Air mattresses, sleds, shower curtains, and all sorts of other plastic stuff exists in our homes but cannot go into the recycling cart.

We can accept plastic containers, like it has a lid, handle, or neck, with a "resin ID codes" 1 through 7. 

The "resin ID code" is that number inside the triangle that you can find on the bottom of some plastic items.

If it is not a container, or if you cannot find a code, then place it into the trash.

 

problematic and dangerous items

Batteries

Never place batteries or items that have batteries in the recycling. 

Batteries can be dangerous and they are common source of fires.

Follow these steps to recycle them.

 

Propane Tanks (all sizes)

Camp stove containers and all other propane tanks do not belong in the recycling cart.

The small ones can be taken to Dane County Clean Sweep. 

The large ones more appropriate for gas grills can be recycled at the drop-off sites if they are empty and the valve is open.

 

Water Filters

They are plastic on the outside, but full of charcoal or some other media on the inside to filter the water.  Do not put them in your recycling. Check with the manufacturer to see if a mailback program is available.

 

Ice Cream Tubs, Oyster Pails, and Similiar Food Takeout Boxes

These kind of containers are still not acceptable in our system, so they should go into the trash.

Takeout paper cups are now recyclable if they are clean and dry.  Cartons are recyclable, too. However, we still can't take these ice cream / oyster pail style containers in the recycling recycling yet.

 

K-Cups or Other Coffee Pods

These small pods can clog the screens used to sort glass. 

Place these into  the trash.

 

Diapers

They contain human waste, and it's a mix of plastic and paper projects.

Put these in the trash (and choose ones you can wash out and reuse if you can).

 

Flexible Packaging (metallic pouches, squeeze pouches, etc.)

They belong in the trash.

 

Porcelain & Dishes

Do not put your broken dishes, or anything like porcelain or enamel or whatever your hard dinner plates and bowls are made out of into your recycling cart. 

Donate them if they are usable, or place them into the trash if they are not.

Why? When your recyclables are sorted, this kind of material will fall in with the good recyclable bottle & jar glass.  And this stuff cannot be recycled with glass.  The companies that process recycled glass into cullet so it can be made back into bottles or other materials have to remove all of these broken bits of dishes or other porcelain / enamel items.  This adds a lot of cost, labor, and time to the process.

 

Light Bulbs

Do not place light bulbs in the recycling cart.  This is the wrong kind of glass, and they all contain other items besides glass that are problematic.

There are a wide variety of types of light bulbs out there, and the correct way to dispose of them safely varies.

Use this website for help on how to correctly dispose of your bulbs.

 

Bear Paws

Yeah, that happened one time. Should go without saying that animal parts should not go into the recycling.