UNDERSTANDING THE IMPORTANCE OF RECYCLING

Recycling conserves natural resources
When we recycle, we’re collecting materials that can be reused as a feedstock for manufacturing new products. Recycling decreases the need to extract virgin materials from natural environments, which reduces land disturbances, conserves natural resources, water, and energy.

Recycling reduces environmental pollution
The manufacturing of goods, and the transportation and disposal of waste creates greenhouse gas emissions that could be greatly reduced by recycling. However, the most impactful way to avoid these emissions is to reduce and reuse items before they need to be recycled or discarded.

Recycling improves our communities
Recycling is a citizenship skill that demonstrates leadership and concern for the environment. Recycling reduces litter and improves our communities by promoting ecological literacy.

Recycling saves landfill space
Not everything can be reduced, reused, or recycled, and we need to conserve available landfill space for those items that cannot be diverted from disposal.

Recycling creates jobs
It’s estimated that there are 757,000 recycling-related jobs in the United States, and these careers represent $36 billion in wages and $6.7 billion in tax revenue each year (EPA)

Recycling…it’s the Law!
Recycling is mandatory in Ulster County. All persons are required to source separate the regulated recyclable materials. Please contact us to anonymously report non-compliance.

DUAL STREAM RECYCLING AT UCRRA

ACCEPTED ITEMS

View the Dual Stream Recycling Guide (ENGLISH)

View the Dual Stream Recycling Guide (SPANISH)

 

 

HOW TO RECYCLE IN ULSTER COUNTY

Residents have the option to bring recyclables to their local town transfer station, or hire a company to pick up their recyclables at the curb. Commercial businesses have the option to bring recyclables to UCRRA, or hire a company to pick up their recyclables at the curb. Please note: UCRRA does not accept residential drop-off of recyclables. Please visit our page Recycling Options for Businesses and Residents to learn more about how to recycle in Ulster County.

RECYCLING TIPS

  • When in doubt, ask! If you’re not sure if an item is recyclable, contact your hauler, town transfer station, or ask the UCRRA Recycling Outreach Team. Putting items in the recycling bin when you’re not sure they’re acceptable for recycling can damage equipment, harm workers, and ruin the value of other recyclables!
  • Always keep recyclables loose; do not bag your recyclables. Do not place plastic bags or flexible plastic films in the recycling bin.
  • Rinse containers clean and dry of any food or liquid residue.
  • Break down cardboard boxes.
  • Do not put scrap metal in the recycling bin.
  • Do not put hazardous wastes in the recycling bin.

 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

No. The number printed on plastic items is called a resin identification code, and it is used to identify the type of plastic container it is made from, not recyclability. The number alone is not a good indicator that the item is accepted in the recycling program you participate in. If you have curbside collection, it is always best to check with your hauler for recycling instructions.

Number 1 – PETE (Polyethylene terephthalate):
Soda bottles, water bottles, cooking oil bottles, and medicine containers.

Number 2 – HDPE (High-density Polyethylene):
Containers for: laundry/dish detergent, milk, shampoo, conditioner, also various toys, and grocery bags.

Number 3 – V (Polyvinyl chloride):
Pipes, shower curtains, clear medical tubing, vinyl dashboards and seat covers.

Number 4 – LDPE (Low-density Polyethylene):
Wrapping films, grocery bags, and sandwich bags.

Number 5 – PP (Polypropylene):
Tupperware, yogurt tubs, (orange) medicine containers, and plastic caps of soda bottles.

Number 6 – PS (Polystyrene):
Plastic cups, disposable cutlery and cups (clear and colored), coffee cups, packing peanuts, Styrofoam insulation.

Number 7 – OTHER:
They are made of any combination of 1-6 or another, less commonly used plastic

‘Single Stream Recycling’ refers to when all recyclable items are placed into one bin for collection. Users do not need to further separate items into any subcategories.
‘Dual Stream Recycling’ refers to when users need to separate recyclable items into subcategories – like mixed paper and commingled containers (plastic, glass & metal).

At recycling centers, recyclable materials are sorted both mechanically and by hand. The types of processing equipment at recycling centers can vary. Single stream recycling facilities often have more specialized machines to sort through the complex stream of recyclables mechanically.

UCRRA processes dual stream recycling only. If you utilize a Single Stream curbside recycling service, please contact your hauler for a list of accepted items.

Recycling programs can vary. It’s important to know your local program for many reasons! In order for recycling to be truly successful and sustainable, the industry must reduce contamination. This means keeping recyclable items clean, dry, free of food and liquid, but it also means making sure undesirable items are not mixed in with the recycling stream. Putting items in the recycling bin when you’re not actually sure they are accepted in your recycling program is called ‘wishcycling’ and this can lead to damaged equipment, injured workers, lost efficiencies in time management, which leads to financial losses for recyclers. In some cases, contaminated loads of recycling are no longer marketable to manufacturers. These are some of the reasons it’s important to know your program! When in doubt, ask!

The Ulster County Mandatory Source Separation and Recycling Law, Local Law Number 4 of 2010, establishes regulated recyclables materials and requires all persons in Ulster County to source-separate those materials for recycling.

As defined by the law, “Person” shall mean “any natural person, individual, association, owner or manager of a business, commercial or industrial establishment, joint venture, corporation, trust, estate, institution, not-for-profit organization or any other legal entity including a municipality or any other waste generator.”

It is considered an unlawful act for any person to discard or fail to separate regulated recyclable materials. Please contact us to report any instances of noncompliance.

Recyclables that arrive to UCRRA are consolidated, then sorted into subcategories based on the type of material or plastic resin identification code. Each of the resulting streams is then baled into large cubes, wighing 1200-1500 lbs per bale. UCRRA sells these recyclables in bulk as commodities. The price per lb. and end users are made public in UCRRA Board Meeting Document Commodities Report. The end user or buyers of these materials change according to Market Conditions.Commodities may be resold several times after they leave UCRRA or before they becomes turned into a new product or consumer good.

UCRRA processes dual stream recycling from municipal recycling drop off centers and commercial businesses. At the UCRRA Material Recovery Facility, recyclable commodities are consolidated and sorted into sub-categories: mixed paper, corrugated cardboard, glass, nonferrous metal, ferrous metal, #1 PETE bottles, #2 HDPE jugs, and mixed #3-7 tubs and lids. These subcategories are baled into large cubes, temporarily stored onsite, and marketed (in bulk) to recycling companies that further process the materials into consumer goods.

Unlike trash, recycling is not required to come to UCRRA facilities. If a company picks up recyclables at the curb, that company is required to manage it for the purpose of recycling, per the Ulster County Mandatory Recycling Law. The company may bring it to a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) for further consolidation and processing. UCRRA does not process ‘single stream recycling’. If you utilize a curbside hauling service, please contact the company directly.

Clamshell packaging is two clear molded plastic halves joined together by a hinge. All clamshell packaging is clear to allow maximum visibility of the product being purchased. Clamshell packaging received its name because it resembles a clam shell.

Examples: salad containers, rigid fruit/berry containers, bakery containers, etc.

Unlike other recyclable containers, ‘clamshell’ packaging is a complex stream of plastic containers manufactured from a wide range of plastic resins (the number on the bottom of the container). At the UCRRA Materials Recovery Facility, plastic resins are sorted by hand into specific sub-categories, and clamshells do not fall under the plastic resin types or the container shapes that the facility can effectively sort by hand.

To capture this complex stream of plastic containers efficiently, a recycling facility must have a series of specialized equipment, called optical sorters. This automated sorting equipment can differentiate between plastic resin types hundreds of times per minute, sorting the complex stream of containers by plastic type. The UCRRA recycling center does not have any optical sorting equipment.

Additionally, in order to capture and recycle these containers economically, a recycling facility must have a very large quantity of the sorted material to bring to end-markets that will purchase it. UCRRA sorts and processes a relatively small portion of the County’s recycling stream, which makes purchasing any new sorting equipment uneconomical.

Additionally, in order to bring sorted material to end markets that will purchase it, recycling facilities must meet the quality standards of the buyers. Clamshell containers are often contaminated by food residues, which makes them a lower quality grade of plastic. These containers are also ‘lightweighted’ which makes them compress flat during processing, where they can be mistakenly be sorted as 2-D rather than 3-D objects and this contaminates 2-D (paper) streams.

UCRRA operates a dual stream recycling center and does not process ‘single stream recycling’. If you utilize a curbside hauling service, please contact the company directly.

Yes, caps and lids are recyclable. If the container is plastic keep the caps/lids on. If it is a glass container please remove the metal lid.

The recycling industry must adapt to constantly-changing market conditions. Recycling is a global commodities marketplace where many economic factors influence the industry, including supply and demand. Recycling rules can also vary depending on where you live and what type of Material Recovery Facility your recyclables are sent to, and the type of buyers they have found for the raw materials. Recyclers must follow strict quality standards from their buyers, and pass those standards down onto the users of the system. For recycling to be sustainable, both environmentally and economically, consumers should follow the rules set by their recyclers.

UCRRA RECYCLING OUTREACH TEAM

The Agency’s Director of Sustainability and Recycling Educator are available to assist municipalities, businesses, schools, and other institutions with implementing or improving their recycling programs. Learn more here.