Column: You can, and should, recycle bathroom items

By Amanda Haffele

One room in the house often gets overlooked by recycling. In fact, according to Keep America Beautiful, only 1 in 5 people will recycle items from this room and 20 percent of the population doesn’t even know items here can be recycled.

What room am I talking about? You guessed it, the bathroom.

It may seem like a silly idea to keep a recycle bin in the bathroom, but did you know that over 552 million 15-ounce shampoo bottles could end up in U.S. landfills each year? If all of these bottles were to get recycled each year, we’d save over 12.5 million gallons of gasoline.

So why don’t we recycle items in the bathroom? It’s inconvenient, especially when the toilet paper runs out and you’re stuck strategizing how to get more without removing your back end from the toilet seat. Or when you realize you’re out of conditioner in the middle of washing your hair, what a bummer.

During times like these, recycling the toilet paper roll or conditioner bottle is so far in the back of our minds it usually doesn’t even register. But what would happen if we did get into the habit of recycling in moments of peril such as these? Just think of all the resources we’d save.

A recycle bin in the bathroom might be over the top—but placing empty items on top of the counter or toilet for recycling isn’t. Try and make recycling in the bathroom a habit, just like recycling in the kitchen. Since bathroom garbage needs to be removed anyway, take the time and go one simple step further – recycle.
Here’s a reminder of all those wonderful bathroom items that can be saved from the landfill:

Plastic

Plastic items that can be recycled in your recycling bin include and are not limited to the following: shampoo, conditioner, lotion, liquid or foam soap, medicine, hair spray, gel, mouth wash, and multi-purpose and toilet bowl cleaner bottles or petroleum jelly, vapor rubs and hair wax containers.

Make sure all items are empty, then keep the cover on or pump in to make sure they get recycled correctly. Even plastic films, such as the wrap-around toilet and paper towel rolls can also be recycled, just not curbside. Take plastic films to a grocery store that accepts plastic bags for recycling or a big box store such as Target or Walmart. Throw into the trash non-bottled items such as sticks of deodorant, mascara tubes, make-up compacts, disposable razors, squeeze lotion, toothbrushes, toothpaste, or ointment tubes.

Recycled plastic containers from the bathroom can be recycled into a variety of useful new products including benches, carpets, hairbrushes, clothing, car parts, and of course back into bottles.

Cardboard & Paper

Make it a routine to recycle tissue boxes, toilet paper and paper towel rolls, or any reading materials from those extended visits. Toss all other boxed items found in the bathroom such as toothpaste, soap, and feminine hygiene products in the garbage.

The reason these items cannot be recycled is that manufacturers will apply or add special additives in cardboard boxes if they’re made specifically for the bathroom, refrigerator, or freezer. This is to keep moisture out and the products inside stable and intact.

Cardboard from the bathroom may be recycled into boxboard such as cracker or cereal boxes, toilet or tissue paper, or napkins.

Metal

Unfortunately, not much metal is recyclable from your bathroom. Unless you have those new aluminum soap dispensers, I can’t think of any other metal item that can be recycled from the bathroom.

Aerosol or metal spray cans such as hair spray, deodorant, shaving cream, and air fresheners are a danger in the recycling world. Portage County Solid Waste can properly dispose of these items through our household hazardous waste program but not the curbside recycling program. Why? Because a simple can of hair spray may not seem like much, however in the eyes of a recycling facility worker it could still hold residual spray that may injure them during handling. Because they’re pressurized, they might explode and become a projectile in the facility. Or worst case scenario (and yes, it has happened in Wisconsin material recovery facilities or recycling centers before) it can cause a fire and wreak havoc that way.

Glass

Glass items such as spent candle holders (with wax removed), lotions, cleaners, and essential oil bottles can be recycled. Remove caps and dispose of them in the trash. Keep windows, mirrors, drinking glasses, dishware, and ceramics (non-container glass) out of the recycle bin. These items are created using slightly different materials than glass bottles and jars (container glass) and can cause big problems at glass recycling facilities. When non-container glass is mixed with container glass, it can cause production or machinery damage and may create defective containers unsuitable for use.

When we recycle container glass it gets turned into beer bottles, fiberglass insulation, aggregate for road construction, countertops, and many other specialized products.

Not sure if you can recycle it? Give us a call, we love to talk trash, at 715-343-6297. As a reminder, we are closed Monday, September 5 in observance of Labor Day. but will have normal hours the Saturday before and Tuesday after.

Enjoy the long weekend and thank you for being better recyclers.

Amanda Haffele is the Portage County Solid Waste Director. She works at the Material Recovery Facility, 600 Moore Rd., Plover, and can be reached at 715.343.6297 or [email protected].