PEORIA, Ariz. (Dec.
2, 2009) – The city has expanded its curbside recycling program to include
additional types of plastic, as well as food and drink packaging and shredded
paper.
Specifically, residents
now can toss the following into their recycling bins:
-
Plastic #3 - Bottles
of the sort that hold cooking oil or window cleaner.
-
Plastic #4 -
Squeezable bottles and six-pack rings.
-
Plastic #5 - Butter
tubs and yogurt, sour cream and cottage cheese containers.
-
Plastic #6 - Fountain
drink plastic cups, disposable plates, CD cases. (No foam material.)
-
Plastic #7 - Rigid
plastic, buckets and utensils.
-
Wet-strength
cardboard, such as frozen-food boxes and soda carriers.
-
Shredded paper in
clear plastic bags. (Please tie bags.)
Peoria’s curbside
recycling program has accepted plastics #1 and #2 since its inception. Plastic
#1 is found in: water, juice, sport-drink, mouthwash and catsup bottles. Plastic
#2 is found in: milk, water and juice jugs; laundry-detergent containers; and
shampoo and dish-soap bottles.
Since the city
implemented curbside recycling in 2007, Peoria residents have diverted more than
30,000 tons of material to the North Gateway Material Recovery Facility in
northern Phoenix. That amounts to almost a quarter of the solid waste material
the city collects!
Selling the recyclable
material has brought in more than $700,000 and saved Peoria a similar amount in
landfill fees.
What about plastic
grocery bags?
Peoria’s curbside
recycling program still cannot accept plastic grocery bags because they gum up
the machinery at the processing facility. To address this, the city is
partnering with the Arizona Federation of Marketing Alliance to promote Bag
Central Station, a program in which retailers host drop-off points for plastic
grocery bags. Residents who would like to recycle those bags can take them to
participating stores such as Albertsons, Bashas’, Fry’s, Lowe’s, Safeway,
Sprouts, Target, Walgreens, and Walmart.
For more information on
Peoria’s curbside recycling program, visit
www.peoriaaz.gov/recycle.
