When we think of recycling at home we tend to think of cans, paper, plastic and glass. And junk removal is everything else. But maybe not so much actually.
The fact is that there's far more "junk" that is actually recyclable - and that doesn't need to end up in landfills or incinerators. Really.
Sure, recycling is easy.
If your city, town, or community has municipal or privately-owned waste management services available to residents then you've likely got a large waste bin or two at your house. And if you live in an apartment or a condo, then there's almost certainly industrial-size dumpsters for your garbage as well as one for all the recyclables.
Easy peasy, right?
Well, you may be surprised at the variety of household items that, when they are no long working or wanted, can be recycled instead of banished to the realm of merely residential "junk."
And why is this important?
Because as much as we talk about recycling, being green, and having environmentally friendly waste management and disposal processes, our nation is still struggling with the challenges of bulk recycling.
A large part of the challenge is being able to successfully sort and separate the recyclables found in the solid waste stream, or municipal solid waste (MSW). And a big reason for that is a failure on the part of consumers to properly dispose of their own trash and rubbish.
Another reason is the common practice of single stream recycling.
Part of the appeal of the practice of single stream recycling for both consumers and waste management companies is the "ease of use" of having just one recycling bin for all recyclables.
But there is an unfortunate and significant downside to the practice.
So, what are the common methods of municipal recycling collection? An article at the website FiveThirtyEight explains,
"'Multi-stream' refers to a system where participants have to sort multiple kinds of recycling materials at home, before collection. 'Dual-stream' systems require separation of paper/fiber material and containers. “Single stream” recycling is sorted after collection."
Part of the problem with the single-stream approach is that it also prone to contamination. What this means in recycling terms is that consumers tend to put inappropriate waste items in, which contaminates the "appropriate" recyclables.
For example, as the FiveThirtyEight articles goes on to note, this items include,
"...electronics and batteries, plastic grocery bags and Christmas lights — all of which can be recycled, but only through specialty drop-off programs, not the curbside bin. There are perfectly recyclable cans and paper coated in food, grease or cleaning fluids that render them unrecyclable. There are plastic bottles full of glass syringe needles that break open at the sorting facilities like a piñata from hell."
Compounding the problems of contamination and single stream recyclable collection is the process of single-sort itself. All of the constant compacting and smashing of he materials together by the trucks results in broken glass getting into the plastic and the paper.
And the sorting facilities use machines to separate different types of waste materials from one another. However, the machines sometimes can’t tell the difference between a flattened water bottle and flattened can and a piece of waste paper.
Almost 15 percent of bottles and around 30 percent of cans are incorrectly sorted and shipped.
And the machines can’t un-grind glass shards from the fibers of a cardboard box or pick tiny bits of paper and plastic from piles of half-broken glass, according to the article.
Collectively, the end result is no increase in the overall recycling rate and, possibly, even a drop in the total percentage of solid waste being recycled.
Have you ever wondered what waste or junk items in your home or garage could possibly be recycled instead of hauled off to be disposed of at the local landfill?
You may be surprised to learn that there's much more to recycling junk from your home than you realized. So, with that in mind, we put together this graphic that illustrates ten of the top things from your home that you may not have known could be recycled.
And best of all, if you have any of these items - or other recyclables - lying around your home waiting to be properly disposed of, you need not do it yourself.
That's because the faster, easier, and more affordable way to "properly" recycle all of these types of junk and waste items is to call on an expert junk hauling and disposal team like Junk King. We are not only junk "kings" but we are also the pioneers of "green" and environmentally friendly junk disposal practices.
All of which means that you can do your part to be green, help the planet, and get rid of all the household junk that's still cluttering your home - and let us do all the heavy lifting for you!
Junk King provides an efficient, safe, affordable, and eco-friendly residential junk removal service so you don’t need to worry about how to dispose of your excess junk or extra-large trash piles.
And, if you'd rather load it yourself, you might even consider renting one of our user-friendly MINI Dumpsters. This option allows you to load your junk and debris at your own pace and then have Junk King come and remove it all for you.
Our full-service teams, on the other hand, specialize in residential and commercial trash and junk removal.
We can be at your home or workplace in mere minutes, so call us today! And our expert crews are fully insured and well-trained, so you can trust them to get rid of your debris and other unwanted items in a professional and courteous fashion.
And one of the best things about using Junk King is that we recycle as much of the material that we pick-up as possible. This is proof of our commitment to being an eco-friendly junk removal service.
If you have questions about what we can do for you, give us a call at 1-888-888-JUNK (5865).