Don’t forget household plastics
Remember to lift the blue lid of your recycling cart after you’ve done any gardening around your home.
If you’re not going to re-use them, those plastic flowerpots and plant trays can all be recycled.
Everything from large nursery flowerpots for shrubs and trees to small planting trays for annual bedding plants, perennials, vegetables and herbs can all be recycled.
Simply rinse or wipe out the dirt and put the plastics in your recycling cart.
These plastic pots and trays can also be taken to your nearest recycling depot.
Waste Reduction Facilitator Rae Stewart reminds us: “All household plastics #1 through #7 are accepted in the curbside recycling program, and these plastics from your plants are no different.
“Just ensure your garden pots or trays are cleaned of all dirt before you recycle them.
“Unfortunately, the little plastic tags that identify the plants can’t be recycled—they’re too small for workers at Cascades Recovery to pick up off a moving conveyor, so the tags go into regular garbage.”
Deanne Stephenson, operations manager of Cascades Recovery (the facility where all our recycling ends up), says, “The markets where the plastics are shipped to for recycling are watching closely for quality issues, so keeping the plastics clear of dirt, wooden stakes, metal twist ties or other contaminants is essential. Any help residents can provide in this would be welcome.”
Businesses like nurseries, landscape design contractors and farmers with larger volumes can contact Cascades Recovery at 250-491-2242 to arrange for the recycling of their plastics. For more info on recycling, go to regionaldistrict.com/recycle, email email@example.com, or call the Regional Waste Reduction Office, 250-469-6250.