What actually gets recycled from a household bin

America Recycles Day on 15 November is a reminder that putting something in a recycling bin is not the same as it being recycled. What gets recycled depends on whether there is a buyer for the material, and whether it arrives clean enough to process. This varies by city and country, but some patterns hold almost everywhere.

Usually recycled

• Metals: aluminium cans, steel tins and metal scrap have strong markets
• Cardboard and clean paper: newspapers, boxes and office paper
• Clear PET bottles: water and soft drink bottles, especially when clean
• Glass bottles: recyclable, though collection depends on the area
• Hard HDPE plastics: milk and detergent bottles in many places

In India, the kabadiwala and informal sector have long bought these materials by weight, which is why they are recycled at high rates.

Sometimes recycled

• Other rigid plastics, depending on local facilities
• Tetra Pak cartons, where specialist recyclers exist
• Clean plastic films and carry bags, in some places

Rarely recycled

• Multilayer packaging such as chips packets, biscuit wrappers and sachets
• Black plastic trays, which sorting machines often cannot detect
• Food-soiled paper and cardboard
• Thermocol (polystyrene) foam
• Small items like bottle caps and straws, which slip through sorting
• Mixed-material items

Keeping dry waste valuable

• Rinse food containers before putting them in dry waste
• Keep paper dry and separate from wet waste
• Flatten boxes and bottles to save space
• Do not bag recyclables in plastic bags inside the bin, since many facilities cannot open them

The 'wishcycling' problem

Putting doubtful items into recycling in the hope they will be recycled often contaminates the whole batch, sending more to landfill. When unsure, check your local rules or ask your collector.

The bigger lesson

Recycling is the last step, not the first. Reducing and reusing come before it. The easiest material to recycle is the packaging you never bring home.