Letting go is not an easy thing. When you finally do let go,
here are ways to do it:
How
Do I Dispose of…?
Austin
Recycling Guide
Go to Earth911 to find where
and how to recycle just about anything
No recycling
service in your area?
Call Green
Goddess Recycling at 512 423 8600
Styrofoam is seldom recyclable. Call the Peanut Hotline at
800
828 2214 to find out about loctions in your area (they know
from your caller ID) to bring Styrofoam peanuts to.
Paper
Newsprint, circulars, office paper, notebook paper, stationary,
junk mail, and catalogs are accepted virtually anywhere. Look
for the recycling containers
in parking lots of schools, Goodwills, etc.
Envelopes, sticky notes, and other paper coated with adhesive
material are accepted by the City of Austin’s pickup
service. Adhesive paper is not accepted at Ecology Action.
Waxy paper and cartons (milk and juice quarts, for example) are not recyclable.
Pizza boxes, take-out containers, and food- or oil-stained
paper are not recyclable. Food contaminates the paper.
Corrugated cardboard is accepted as-is at Ecology Action.
The City of Austin’s
pickup service requires you to flatten all boxes, cut them into 2’ by 2’ sections
and bundle them with string.
Moving boxes in good condition are accepted at the Tesoros
Trading Company’s
wholesale office (506 Baylor).
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Plastic
“Plastic” is a very general term used to
describe a family of chemical compounds. For recycling purposes,
plastics are labeled according
to the Society of the Plastics Industry resin identification coding system,
commonly known as those little numbers printed inside the triangular
recycling symbols
on the bottom of your milk jug or Coke bottle. Only types 1 (PETE) and 2
(HDPE) are easily recyclable in most American cities.
• Plastics 1 - 7 are recyclable through Solid Waste Services’ Single
Stream Recycling service in the City of Austin.
•
Types 1 and 2 can be recycled by anyone who accepts plastic recycling.
This includes various private waste management firms, Ecology Action,
and several bins throughout the
city.
•
Types 3, 4, 5, and 7 (but not 6!) are accepted by the Austin Children’s
Museum (201 Colorado Street) for reuse in art projects. Kids will
be using this stuff, so please clean it thoroughly.
•
Plastic shopping bags should never be recycled along with type 1 and 2 plastic
containers! Any Whole Foods, Central Market, H-E-B, or Randall’s accept
plastic bags for recycling in any quantity. (The City of Austin’s website
says you must return bags to the same store. This simply isn’t
true.) Plus, Whole Foods will deduct five cents from your order for
each plastic
or canvas
you bring into the store and reuse upon checkout.
• Film canisters are accepted by Precision Camera (3801 N Lamar, Austin,
TX)
and
other camera stores, though you should call ahead to be sure.
•
Motor oil bottles are not recyclable – even if they’re
empty. See the hazardous waste section below.
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Metals
• Aluminum cans (soda and beer, for example) are
accepted virtually anywhere.
• Aluminum foil and pie tins are accepted at Ecology Action.
•
Tin, which is used to store canned goods, is accepted by the City of Austin’s
pickup service and at most places that accept “cans.” (Don’t
throw your tin cans in a bin marked simply “aluminum.”) While
aluminum has virtually replaced tin as the metal of choice for drinks,
some fruit juice
and beer cans are still made of tin.
•
Aerosol cans are accepted by the City of Austin’s pickup service. Only
empty or near-empty aerosol cans should be recycled, as their contents may rupture
in the process. Partially full cans must be taken to the Household Hazardous
Waste Facility on Tuesday or Wednesday from 12pm–6pm and the first Saturday
of every month from 7am–12pm.
•
Scrap metal and large metal items can be dropped off at Ecology Action or at
the Diversion Recycling Center at the City of Austin landfill. The city’s
pickup services will not haul away large metal.
• CDN Systems takes non-ferrous
metals, such as stainless, aluminum, copper, brass, or anything a magnet
won't adhere to.
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Appliances
• Waterheaters and all appliances (except TVs
and microwaves) will be accepted by Austin Metal and Iron Works,
1000 E 4th, 477-4640.
• Diversion Recycling Center will also accept appliances and various other
materials for recycle.
•
The City of Austin’s pickup service will pick up bulky items during specially
scheduled times. Over 10% of the bulky items are recycled. Metal refrigerators
will be recycled – please remove the doors before placing them on the curb.
You’ll receive a notice informing you of upcoming bulk pick-ups.
But if you need to know sooner than that, you can call the city during
normal
bussiness hours at 494-9400.
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Electronics: Computers,
monitors, peripherals, and components
Computers are considered hazardous waste because their circuitry and parts
contain lead, mercury, and other toxic, soil-polluting substances.
•
Goodwill Industries accepts virtually all electronic waste
free-of-charge.
• Ink and toner cartridges can be dropped off at many Best Buy and office
supply stores.
At the very least, they can provide you with a postage-paid envelope
to mail your cartridges back to the manufacturer to be
refurbished.
•
If you’ve got lots of old computer parts lying around – say, several
boxes – you should hire a private firm to dispose of it for you. For more
information, consult the City
of Austin’s list of computer
recycling locations.
• CDN Systems takes
computer equipment of any kind.
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Cell phones and portable electronics
While Best Buy and other electronics retailers accept donations,
there are plenty of non-corporate, charitable causes that are practically
begging for
your old
or broken phones. We suggest CollectiveGood, which accepts all
manner of portable electronics, including phones, pagers,
and PDAs. The
process
is
easy: Choose
which charity you want to benefit, print out a free mailing label,
and box up the goods. You’ll even get a very official tax
credit. Don’t like
CollectiveGood? A simple Google search for “cell phone donation” yields
plenty of alternatives.
Costco has
a recycling program.
Motor Oil Motor oil is accepted by just about anyone who changes
oil, though you should call first to be sure. Usually they’ll
take other car fluids as well. Oil should be delivered inside a
sealed, leak-proof
container
during
normal business hours. Do not mix used motor oil with other automotive
fluids or materials.
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Chemicals
Household chemicals are accepted by the Household Hazardous
Waste Facility every Tuesday or Wednesday from 12pm–6pm and
the first Saturday of every month from 7am–12pm. Businesses
may drop off waste by appointment only. See the Household
Hazardous Waste Facility in Austin for more
info. If you
are over 65 they will pick up.
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High Efficiency Fluorescents
These new-fangled lights save lots
of energy, but they contain mercury, an environmental toxin and
pollutant.
Luckily,
the Household
Hazardous Waste Facility accepts these bulbs for recycling free-of-charge.
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Batteries
Alkaline batteries are probably okay to throw away.
Since 1984, battery manufacturers have
reduced their mercury content by 97%; because of the
reduced threat, many alkaline batteries
given to recycling programs end up in landfills. As of late
2007, there’s
no conclusive answer to this ongoing
debate.
Non-alkaline batteries (including car batteries) are accepted
by the Household
Hazardous Waste Facility and the Diversion
Recycling
Center. Some
cell phone and laptop batteries can be recycled
at Best Buy. You can also take your cell phones with their batteries
to
Ecology Action
(get link)
during
business
hours, or the UT Campus Environmental Center (get
link) at any time.
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Composting
Composting is not too hard; just keep the following
tips in mind. (Note: these are very basic instructions for composting.)
Do not compost: meat, fish, poultry (this includes bones),
food sauces, fat, grease, oils, dairy products, feces, invasive
weeds, treated
wood, ashes,
charcoal, and non-organic things like plastic, metal,
and
glass. Basically, do not include
anything that will become infectious as it decomposes,
or might poison or infest the area.
Do compost: grass, yard/tree trimmings (no sticks),
leaves, vegetable and fruit food scraps, coffee grounds (Caution:
1
part
coffee grounds to 24 parts of green compost), tea leaves, shredded
paper.
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Have your family members and friends in mind when
determining that the item is not for you. Have a special
place where you keep
future presents,
label them who they are intended for. Use a rainy day to
make your own catalog, and get them ready for the occasion
by wrapping
them.
Shop in
your own re-gifting
store first.
Donate to any Goodwill or Salvation Army. Check your local listings.
Salvation Army pickups are scheduled. Call them to find out when
they are in your area if you have a lot or bulky items. They
require you to list what they will be picking up.
