Are these recyclable?

[ak47num1]

Hi everyone, I am wondering whether the following are recyclable:
- The plastic window of envelopes
- The ads with your credit card bills

Please advise.

[gman]

Hi everyone, I am wondering whether the following are recyclable:
- The plastic window of envelopes
- The ads with your credit card bills

Please advise.

Different city has different recycle program.
In Markham,

1) no (I am not certain though)
2) yes.

[ak47num1]

Different city has different recycle program.
In Markham,

1) no (I am not certain though)
2) yes.

Thanks for the clear answer. I will reuse this thread as more questions arise.

[espeed]

Plastic credit cards: are these the same as those credit card ads in plastic?

What type of plastic are they?

[ak47num1]

^I didn't mean the plastic credit card. I meant the paper ads about VISA programs. I imagine plastic credit cards are recyclable.

[don242]

^I didn't mean the plastic credit card. I meant the paper ads about VISA programs. I imagine plastic credit cards are recyclable.

You should be able to recycle the paper advertisement (as long as no plastic is present). Any paper products should not have any plastic contaminants in them (such as wrapping paper with tape).

As for the plastic card, I don't know. I imagine it would be but again depends on the program where you live.

[espeed]

but cardboard boxes with tape on them are recycled by almost everyone

[don242]

but cardboard boxes with tape on them are recycled by almost everyone

Yes, but that is because cardboard is handled differently than paper.

I know they always warn against putting wrapping paper in the recycling during Christmas since it usually results in too much plastic contamination (tape) meaning all the paper ends up in the landfill.

[espeed]

how about

1. plastic used to wrap cookie trays inside tin boxes
(I saw a "5" recycle sign on one package once)

2. plastic used to store plastic figurine toys
( I assume it's the same plastic used to store electronics in boxes

3. plastic used to wrap gift baskets

[don242]

how about

1. plastic used to wrap cookie trays inside tin boxes
(I saw a "5" recycle sign on one package once)

2. plastic used to store plastic figurine toys
( I assume it's the same plastic used to store electronics in boxes

3. plastic used to wrap gift baskets

Not sure about 1 and 3, but 2 can be recycled. Again, I am not familiar with the recycling program in your area so can't say for sure.

I find that though recycling is encouraged, it isn't always clear what is accepted. Even when you go to the web site for your area I find the description is summarized well but really lacks the detail like you are asking. In our area they accept plastics 1-7 however they make a point of mentioning rigid plastic. So that would seem to exclude the plastic wraps you mentioned. However, they take all sorts of plastic bags (which are clearly not rigid).

The best course of action is, if in doubt, leave it out. I prefer to recycle as much as I can but if by being over zealous we end up contaminating a whole load of recylables then that is not good either.

[espeed]

Not sure about 1 and 3, but 2 can be recycled. Again, I am not familiar with the recycling program in your area so can't say for sure.

I find that though recycling is encouraged, it isn't always clear what is accepted. Even when you go to the web site for your area I find the description is summarized well but really lacks the detail like you are asking. In our area they accept plastics 1-7 however they make a point of mentioning rigid plastic. So that would seem to exclude the plastic wraps you mentioned. However, they take all sorts of plastic bags (which are clearly not rigid).

The best course of action is, if in doubt, leave it out. I prefer to recycle as much as I can but if by being over zealous we end up contaminating a whole load of recylables then that is not good either.

I wonder what the rigid plastic wrap around figurines would be since my area only takes #1,2,4 (plastic bags) and 6, probably not I guess then. I know Markkham and Hamilton recycle number 5

[ak47num1]

What about juice boxes (not the 1L juice cartons, but the 355 mL juice boxes)?
Waterloo seems to accept juice boxes, but I am not sure about elsewhere in Canada.

[MacGyver]

Recyling programs vary so widely across the country, you really need to check with your municipality to see what is and isn't accepted.

For example: It seems like you can throw any type of plastic in a Toronto blue bin, but Ottawa blue bins for example are very specific about not just what types of plastic but also what types of containers made of those plastics.

[brunes]

I know around here the program specifically told us we do *NOT* have to remove those plastic windows from envelopes when throwing them in the paper recycling. I assume the process somehow extracts them. I do not know what becomes of them however.

[TotallyKiller]

What about juice boxes (not the 1L juice cartons, but the 355 mL juice boxes)?
Waterloo seems to accept juice boxes, but I am not sure about elsewhere in Canada.

In Alberta these are returnable for refund (but you pay a deposit on them when you buy). All the other plastics, we have no specific recycling for. We're really behind the times for recycling.