Between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve, the EPA estimates that waste in the U.S. increases by more than 25%, or by about 1 million tons. That’s 2 billion pounds of garbage.
That’s gift wrapping, the plastic bubbles and ties on toys, cups, and other items from restaurants, decorations — just so many items.
People are more aware of recycling, so not all of it ends up in a landfill. But there are so many different plastics, papers, paper-and-plastic containers — we all have questions about what can and cannot be recycled. Pizza boxes? Plastic-coated wrapping paper? The thing plastic around a toy figurine? Those plastic New Year's Eve champagne glasses? Fake trees? Real trees?
CAN RECYCLE
- Glass: unbroken and check your location first
- Paper and cardboard: Flattened cardboard, newspapers, magazines, office paper and common mail
- Metal cans: Beverage and food cans
- Plastic: Types 1, 2, and 5
- Examples:
- 1 — Water bottles (with the cap and unscrunched)
- 2 — Thicker plastic like laundry detergent bottles
- 5 — Butter tubs
- Examples:
Do they need to be clean? "Empty, clean and dry," says Republic Services. Less than a teaspoon of the product should be left in the container so they don't have to waste water to clean them.
CAN NOT RECYCLE
- Wrapping paper
- Styrofoam
- Plastic bags or other thin plastic: "If you can put your finger through it, we don't want it."
- Fake Christmas trees: They need to be kept and used for 15 years to equate to the sustainability of a live tree recycled each year
- Multi-material milk cartons
- Shrink wrap
WHAT ABOUT ... ?
- Batteries: BatteriesPlus stores will take them
- Household lightbulbs: Contact NV Energy, who will swap four older bulbs for LED bulbs for free. To rid of bulbs, check Republica Services universal waste program, which does have a cost
- Old appliances like microwaves: Check the Republic Services hazardous household waste (HHW) calendar. You can also take them to scrap metal dealer
- Live Christmas trees: Check Springs Preserve for drop-off site details
SUSTAINABILITY TIPS
- Think about reducing before recycling
- Enroll in a local food waste program like Las Vegas Compost and Viva La Compost
- Save vegetable scraps in the freezer to make vegetable broth
- Save boxes and bags to reuse for gifts throughout the year
- Replace single-use plastic items with sustainable swaps
- Plastic bags: Canvas totes or reusable bags
- Bring a washable/reusable container for beverages
- For daily household products like soap, subscribe to a refill service
- Bring your own to-go container for leftovers and a to-go silverware set
- Try to challenge yourself for 30 days, or implement the change slowly
RESOURCES
- Republic Services: recyclingsimplified.com
- UNLV DUDO: 24/7 Drive Up, Drop Off (DUDO) recycling program located at the southeast corner of Flamingo and Swenson on the south side of the gray trailers
Guests: Tara Pike, sustainability coordinator, UNLV; Steve Orrico, manager of community relations, Republic Services; Michael Gulich, VP of sustainability, MGM Resorts
