Some reports have shown that over twenty-four million tons of corrugated cardboard is thrown away every single year. Even though this may sound discouraging and pessimistic to you, on a more positive note, over ninety percent of that amount is recycled.
That’s great news for sure. In other words, cardboard is by far one of the simplest materials in the world to recycle. Why is that? Well, that’s because it is made from wood fiber and besides that, it is overall beneficial for the planet and decreases pollution too!
Now, if you are interested in recycling this material, then you need to know that you cannot just toss it away, but you need to understand that you’re about to give this packaging a brand-new life by recycling it.
There are numerous ways to do so, without making any major mistakes and today we’re going to remind you how to do it the right way!
Do Not Have The Same Recycling Stream
One of the biggest mistakes that people make when it comes to this is that they have the same recycling stream. Seasoned recyclers at AB Recycling would like to remind you that the first step that you must take when adding cardboard to the recycling program is to first identify it as its own recycling stream. You need to be sure that each waste and recycling station comes with an extra stream to divide and gather the cardboard.
In most situations, a vast majority of the cardboard comes from shipping and receiving, hence you need to make sure that both of these areas come with bigger bins that are capable of gathering the larger pieces.
Avoid Checking To See If There Are Any Contaminants
This is considered mandatory, yet, sadly, a lot of people fail to do this. Keep in mind that it’s pivotal to properly examine your cardboard boxes before you begin the recycling process. Why does it matter so much?
Well, by doing so, you will ensure there are no contaminants. So what are you supposed to do during this process? For starters, get rid of any tape, plastic elements, or stickers that are embedded in the boxes.
All of them could potentially negatively impact the entire recycling process, while, on the other hand, if your cardboard boxes are free from them, you’ll end up having an efficient and seamless recycling operation.
Don’t Just Leave Them Anywhere
If you do not want to make any mess and further destroy the environment, then it would be wise to see if there’s a cardboard recycling plant close to your home to see if they can pick up your cardboard boxes.
If the answer is no, then the next thing you can do is to leave the storage bin at the storage facility where they gather them. If you have a huge amount of cardboard boxes, then one of the best things that you can do is to drop them off at the cardboard recycling plant.
On the flip side, if that’s not the case, and you would like to recycle them all by yourself, then just browse the web because there are lots of websites where you can learn how to do it effectively.
Don’t Forget To Get Rid Of Staples, Tape, And Other Things
There are a lot of communities that require people to completely get rid of any foreign materials from their cardboard boxes, which include items such as bubble wrap, packing foam, staples, tape, and many others.
That’s something that a lot of people forget to do, which is why this segment is here to serve as a reminder to do so. When it comes to cereal boxes or any other container that normally has dry food, you need to toss away any plastic inserts or bags.
Freezer Boxes And Fridge Boxes Are A Huge No-No
Keep in mind that any box that was designed to be placed in the refrigerator or in the freezer (this also includes any type of beverage carton) shouldn’t be recycled. Why is that? Well, that’s because most of these boxes come with a plastic coating that is here to prevent the box from getting wet.
Although there’s nothing wrong with this plastic coating, unfortunately, if you do not get rid of these boxes, they are going to completely hinder the overall recycling process. That’s exactly why you should never put them in the recycling.
Mistakes can easily be made during recycling, particularly, if that’s something you haven’t done in a while, or ever. And that’s why we decided to write this article, to help you avoid them as much as you can.
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