Modern packaging can make recycling difficult
I am writing concerning the article “We’re letting far too much go to waste” by Danica Jarvis from GreenUP in The Peterborough Examiner, Oct. 17.
According to the article “A spoonful of yogurt left in the bottom of a (plastic) container” can disqualify a whole load of containers from being recycled!
Similarly, when placed in a bin of glass recyclables, “one unrinsed jar with glob of sticky peanut butter at the bottom can contaminate the other items that are perfectly good recyclables.” and so the whole batch of glass jars goes to landfill!
Jarvis does not even mention containers that we as consumers have little choice in purchasing that are made of mixed components, such as cardboard with plastic windows and glass bottles with metal collars to mention just two types. Recycling these presents even more of a challenge.
In our own household, we wish to recycle as many items as possible.
We want to be part of the evergrowing numbers of people who care about our land, our climate and our future. This problem of contaminated recyclables is a solvable problem!
Here are a couple of possible solutions, and I am sure that there could be many more:
We could create jobs for people to sort the collected recycling and remove any offending items but keep the rest.
We could wash glass on a large scale at the recycling centers to remove any food or labeling residue. We could create legislation that leads manufacturers to make single component packaging ( just paper or just glass for example.) that can be more easily recycled.
When we citizens put out bins of recyclables each week, and the Recycling Collection trucks come to each house in the County to pick them up (paid for with our taxes)- we need to be assured that all this effort and expense is worthwhile.
We need to know that the recycling is real.
Let’s solve this problem. Theresa Morris, Peterborough