In this message, we’ll explain what’s at stake when plastic film and styrofoam don’t get recycled, what happens with your plastic bags and styrofoam when you sign up with the ReCollective, a profile of one of ReCo’s key partners, and more!
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Why Recycle Plastic Film and Styrofoam?
If you have been placing expanded polystyrene foam (EPS) and plastic film in your curbside recycling bin, not only is it not getting recycled, it can be contaminating the materials that ARE recyclable curbside!
Americans use 100 billion PE bags annually, averaging only 12 minutes of use. However, the lifespan of the bags in landfills and the environment is several hundred years! And when plastic film ends up in your curbside recycling bin, it gets tangled in sorting machinery and make recycling of accepted materials much harder.
Styrofoam, being 90% air, is bulky and often not cost effective to recycle for that reason. Still it takes up a large portion of landfills! Like plastic film, styrofoam photodegrades and can break down to millimeter thin sizes that pollute our watersheds and even make their way into our drinking water!
There are some municipal and other drop-off programs that accept film and EPS (check your local municipalities), but The ReCollective makes it easy: we will pick it up right from your doorstep and take it to our recycling partners!
This video explains what’s at stake when millions of metric tons of styrofoam are produced each year and only 1% of it is recycled, and some interesting ways this hard-to-recycle item can be diverted!
Orange Recycling Services, Inc. is a full-service commercial recycling company, locally owned and operated for over 32 years in the triangle area. With three areas of expertise – establishing comprehensive recycling programs, effectively shredding confidential materials, and the hauling of C&D, MSW, or recycling for customers.
The ReCollective partners with Orange Recycling Services to recycle plastic bags (film), styrofoam, and paper to be shredded.
Orange Recycling Services compresses the plastic film into densified bales. These bales are then delivered to The TREX Company where they’re turned into composite deck boards or sent to other end manufacturers.
Our partner Orange Recycling Services densifies the Styrofoam. Densified blocks are then shipped to end market manufacturers to make things like plastic components, picture frames, and building materials.
Want more info about what styrofoam and plastic film we can help you recycle? Click here!
ReCo FAQ: Answered
Wondering what is the difference between the setup fee and the service subscription fee?
We charge a one-time setup fee of $16.50, which covers only a portion of our actual cost of the collection kit bags, kit assembly, and kit distribution. Charging a setup fee helps us keep our ongoing subscription lower. The service subscription is an ongoing fee and is charged either monthly or annual depending