(As submitted by Bowling Green Recycling Center)
The Bowling Green Recycling Center wants to remind Bowling Green curbside recyclers that recyclable materials placed in plastic bags cannot be recovered on the Sortline. The Sortline is designed to allow recovery of materials by separating them into their various types just like in the 24hr Dropoff. To do this requires materials to be easily separated by hand or machine.
When materials are enclosed in plastic bags it is impossible to do this. The line runs too fast to tear open plastic bags and sometimes the bags contain garbage. (No garbage in recyclables is a given!) Plastic bags can also jam the mechanical equipment.
Our policy like that of other sort facilities is to discard plastic bags no matter if they are empty or full. It is simply not cost effective or safe to tear open plastic bags.
It has become apparent that many recyclers do not realize that materials in plastic bags are a problem. Materials being delivered to the sort facility by city collection trucks contain a significant number of plastic bags. A recent audit showed most of these bags contain recyclables. There is no doubt people have put forth the effort to recycle these materials. The problem is they don’t realize the materials must be put loose in their recycling carts so they can be separated at the recycling center on the Sortline.
When these bags are thrown away it means everybody’s efforts to recycle are wasted. This is not what we want to do. Our mission is to recycle as many materials and as much volume as economically possible.
This is a reminder that no plastic bags and nothing in plastic bags is accepted for curbside collection. Please put all recyclables loose is the recycling cart. Please help us recycle as much material as possible.
And—Thank You for Recycling
