Dear Recycle Lady,
Last week I purchased several plants at Lowes. Each pot had an information tag with the name of the plant and how to care of it. At the bottom of the tags is a recycle symbol and the words “Recycle. It’s the Natural Thing to Do.” Are these tags recyclable?
Gardner
Dear Gardner,
Unfortunately, these tags are not recyclable locally. I checked several tags and found that some tags have the recycle triangle with a #5 in it and others had a #6 in the triangle. Larger cities would have the equipment for recycling the #5 and #6 plastics, but our Recycling Center only recycles #1 and #2 plastics.
Dear Recycle Lady,
How much water does it take to produce one plastic bottle of filtered water?
Curious
Dear Curious,
According to www.freetheocean.com producing a one-liter bottle of filtered water requires three liters of water. Two liters of this water is required to make the plastic bottle and filter the water. Only one liter of water is consumed. After someone drinks the water and discards the bottle, then the majority of the water used in this production process is lost. Is this the best use of our fresh water? Only 2.5% of the Earth’s water is freshwater, and over half of that is locked away in glaciers and ice caps. This means that over 97% of earth’s water is saltwater from the oceans and seas.
Dear Recycle lady,
Do shampoo bottles need to be completely empty and rinsed out before recycling?
Clean Hair
Dear Clean Hair,
Yes, the shampoo bottles definitely need to be emptied. The bottles could be rinsed, but an easier way is to turn them upside down and let any remaining shampoo drain out. This would be very helpful to the workers at the Recycling Center because shampoo makes a mess of the equipment and makes the floor very slippery, which is hazardous for the staff.
Dear Readers, If you are interested in seeing a feature-length documentary about the plastic pollution crisis and its effect on community and environmental health across the globe, then go to a free, virtual screening. You’ll receive a link to watch the film, The Story of Plastic, at home, at your own convenience.
Have questions about recycling, or interesting information about recycling? Send questions or requests to recyclelady@greenbrier-swa.com. Dear Recycle Lady is sponsored jointly by the Greenbrier Recycling Center and Greenworks Recycling.
