Hey earth muffins! Happy Plastic Free July! 🌎 🎉 This month is a great time to focus on plastic-free living to reduce your consumption of plastics in your daily life. I personally have a goal to reduce plastics as much as possible; but, I know that I will still encounter some plastics this month and beyond. So will you! To prevent these from ending up in the landfill, it is important to recycle anything that you can. Today, I will be sharing everything you need to know about the recycling symbol.
What is the Recycling Symbol?
I am 99.99% sure that you have seen this symbol before. ♻️ It seems to be everywhere in the eco community and is automatically associated with anything to do with recycling. The three arrows of the symbol represent the three steps of the recycle process:
- The collection of materials – typically from curbside recycling programs
- The manufacturing process to turn these recycled materials into something new
- The purchase (and use) of people purchasing products that are made from recyclable materials
This symbol is fairly new, as it was designed in 1970 by Gary Anderson. I am not certain if there were competing symbols back in the day…But these three arrows definitely have the monopoly now!
If Plastic Has The Recycling Symbol, Can I Recycle It?
The biggest issue with the recycling symbol is that, when people see it, they automatically think that the plastic can be recycled… And that is NOT typically the case. Let me repeat that: just because something has the recycling symbol on it, does not mean it can be recycled!! In addition, you might see some type of label that identifies the product as being made with “recycled materials”. This also does not automatically mean it can be throw into the recycle bin.
What You Should Look for Instead!
Instead of looking for the symbol, you need to pay attention to the number that is inside the three arrows. This is the critical information that will help you determine what type of plastic it is. There are seven different kinds of plastics, so you should see a number from 1 to 7 inside. Once you have identified the type, you now need to check with your local recycling center to see if it is recyclable curbside. Most cities only take certain kinds of plastics. Make sure you recycle properly in your area so that no recycling batches are ruined!
So there you have it – the recycling symbol has been rightfully associated with recycling… But also wrongfully associated with the recyclability of plastics. It is time to stop seeing the green recycle symbol at face value! Make sure you are taking the time to identify plastic to ensure it is property recycled (or thrown away). Will you be focusing on recycling this Plastic Free July? Comment below and let me know your thoughts on the recycling symbol!
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This is such an important topic to discuss. There are so many things in my area that you would THINK can be recycled but actually cannot be accepted. I’ve definitely had to start looking really closely at everything to make sure I’m recycling appropriately!
DH is the number watcher in our house.