RECYCLING: City reminds you about plastic bags/film change

Back in October, the city announced a big home-recycling change – no more plastic bags/wrap in your cart/bin. Now that the new year has begun, the change is in effect, so Seattle Public Utilities has sent this reminder, including best practices for how to handle what you CAN still recycle via pickup:

With the start of a new year, the King County Solid Waste Division and Seattle Public Utilities remind residents that recycling right is one of the best resolutions they can make to protect the environment and make recycling effective. Recycling right means keeping plastic bags and wrap out of curbside recycling bins and carts, and making sure all recycling is empty, clean and dry.

As of Jan. 1, garbage and recycling collection programs no longer accept plastic bags and plastic wrap in curbside recycling carts and bins.

Instead, customers should take those separated materials to one of the more than 100 drop-off locations in King County where these materials can be properly recycled. This includes plastic retail bags, sandwich bags, produce bags, dry cleaning bags, and the plastic wrap around bundled toilet paper and paper towels.

Find the full list of materials accepted at drop-off locations and a directory of drop-off locations at plasticfilmrecycling.org. King County and SPU are working to expand drop-off locations that accept plastic bags and plastic wrap for recycling.

While bringing plastic bags and wrap to a drop-off location is best for the environment, customers in Seattle and King County also can throw them in the garbage. It’s better to toss them out rather than contaminate other collected recyclables.

Plastic bags and wrap are often wet or have food waste on them when placed in the curbside recycling and contaminate other materials. Additionally, at recycling facilities, these plastics can jam sorting and processing equipment, leading to frequent shutdowns so workers can remove the tangled materials.

Bringing plastic bags and wrap to a drop-off location keeps the bundled recyclables cleaner and easier to manufacture into new products.

Other ways to recycle right include:

• Make sure your recycling is empty, clean, and dry before putting it in the recycling bin;
• When in doubt, find out – check your city or recycling collection company’s guidelines on which materials are recyclable and which are garbage; and 
• Always recycle empty, clean, and dry plastic bottles, tubs, and jugs; paper; glass bottles and jars; metal cans; and cardboard. 

Find more information at these websites:

· Drop-off locations for plastic bags and wrap

· Seattle Public Utilities information on plastic bags and plastic wrap

· Where Does It Go Tool

· Responsible Recycling Task Force

· Recycle Right

Local dropoff locations listed via the lookup include Admiral and Roxbury Safeways and Westwood Village Target. The private service Ridwell offers home pickup of plastic wrap/film/bags, too.

22 Replies to "RECYCLING: City reminds you about plastic bags/film change"

  • Um, No! January 6, 2020 (6:13 pm)

    So I guess I’m still a little confused.   The article says no plastic bags in “Garbage” and “Recycling”  but I thought items like Ziploc bags and Hefty kitchen trash bags could still go in the garbage?  Is this not correct?In the previous story cited in this article,  WSB seemed to confirm plastic bags are still OK in the garbage within the comments section for that previous article.     Just trying to get a straight answer.  My garbage picked up today and the Hefty bags were gone but a random larger clear bag with Styrofoam peanuts in it got left behind?  Odd?

    • WSB January 6, 2020 (6:17 pm)

      No, it says: “…garbage and recycling collection programs no longer accept plastic bags and plastic wrap in curbside recycling carts and bins.”

      They made it perhaps unnecessarily confusing by not just saying “solid-waste collection programs” as the subject instead of unnecessarily throwing “garbage” in ther, but ultimately it says they’re no longer OK “in curbside recycling carts and bins.”

      • Notjustlarry January 6, 2020 (8:44 pm)

        I’m glad I’m not the only one confused, because later in the article it says
        While bringing plastic bags and wrap to a drop-off location is best for the environment, customers in Seattle and King County also can throw them in the garbage. It’s better to toss them out rather than contaminate other collected recyclables.

    • Jethro Marx January 6, 2020 (8:19 pm)

      Odd indeed- sounds like a pilot program, what? Like a weird garbage exchange concept. What if you had to use a communal garbage can at the end of the block? Would you make less trash?

      • AJP January 6, 2020 (9:51 pm)

        Lots of places in Europe and around the world do that. When I lived in Europe, I’m not sure it made me use less trash per se, but I was certainly more aware of it because I had to bring it to the collection point every few days. 

    • Tracey January 7, 2020 (1:06 pm)

      Your styrofoam peanuts may have been left behind because of the new program to pick up cube side styrofoam blocks for free.  You schedule a pickup online and then place the clear bag of styrofoam next to your garbage.  I believe it is picked up separately.  I thought it was only for blocks though.  There is some confusion around this new program because when I scheduled a pick up as outlined by the City, I was charged for an extra bag of garbage.  I had to call to get the charge removed.  

  • Onion January 6, 2020 (9:58 pm)

    When candy or cereal makers shrink their packages but keep their prices the same its a price hike. And when utilities keep their prices the same but reduce service its a rate hike. They are dishonest to explain it any other way.

    • KM January 7, 2020 (11:34 am)

      They aren’t reducing their service though, now you just have to put it in a different bin. They reason why also doesn’t have to do with a reduction service. People just stink at recycling.

  • KM January 6, 2020 (10:32 pm)

    Looking at all the confusion around recyclables and knowing its “greenwashing” affect on consumer behavior, moving toward reusable items whenever possible and holding manufacturers and consumer product companies responsible is the only way we are going to fix our trash issue (and oil usage, and other environmental issues that arise from our reliance on plastic disposables). Even our best efforts in our own homes are not enough, we have prevent most plastics and many other disposables from entering into the consumer ecosystem in the first place.    

  • cephalopod January 6, 2020 (11:48 pm)

    These are the only West Seattle Drop Off locations on the list from the link given above. Otherwise it’s across the bridge or Burien.Target2800 SW Barton St Seattle, WA (206)932-11532.4 milesSafeway9620 28th Ave SW Seattle, WA (206) 935-39962.79 milesSafeway2622 California Ave SW Seattle, WA (206) 937-51125.03 miles

  • Anonymous Coward January 7, 2020 (4:44 am)

    Let me clear up the confusion by phrasing the announcement another way: “Put your plastic bags in with the rest of your garbage or take them to a dedicated plastic bag drop recycling center.**We tried letting all y’all put them in your curbside recycling.  But our recycling processors priced that portion of the program based on the assumption that the bags would be clean and easily separable from the rest of the co-mingled recyclables (as spelled out in the fine print of those little recycling pamphlets).  That was a bad assumption and so our processors are no longer accepting the plastic bags…

  • dddddd January 7, 2020 (10:57 am)

    Good luck getting people to find a drop-off. I imagine this is more plastic in the trash.

    • WSB January 7, 2020 (11:22 am)

      Two alternatives to that:

      -Actively avoid plastic when possible
      -Sign up with Ridwell for their pickup service

      First is yet another good reason to shop local rather than via delivery.

  • Tracey January 7, 2020 (11:56 am)

    I believe when this story was first posted it also talked about not letting people bag their recyclables. In other words, all recyclables in the bin separately, not in a plastic bag as I see many people do.  Has this part of the change been abandoned or did I misread the original post. Perhaps they assume people will understand that with the plastic bag ban?

    • WSB January 7, 2020 (12:21 pm)

      No, the only change is no more plastic bags/film/wrap. When those WERE accepted in curbside recycling, you were supposed to bag them. The recyclable items otherwise are still being accepted “co-mingled.”

      • Tracey January 7, 2020 (12:53 pm)

        Hmm.  I’m not sure you understand my post.  My neighbors currently put all their recycling – newspaper, coke bottles, wine bottles – inside a white plastic garbage bag that they presumably use to line their inside recycling can.  The recycling guys always pick it up, no questions.  Is this still allowed now that the plastic bag is no longer allowed in recycling?  My understanding was that this practice was never encouraged but will it be disallowed now?

        • WSB January 7, 2020 (1:37 pm)

          Fairly certain that no plastic bags means no plastic bags, period. They should be able to get a cart from SPU.

        • KM January 8, 2020 (10:58 am)

          That plastic bag is not allowed, and was never allowed because it was an individual plastic bag, rather then a plastic bag containing plastic bags and plastic films (which used to be allowed and is no longer), and it contaminates recycling. The pick-up guys are not going to refuse them because they have no time to sort. Contaminated recycling generally winds up in the landfill, so hopefully your neighbors are open to change.

  • EN January 7, 2020 (11:57 am)

     The book Zero Waste Home has become my new go-to for great ideas on reducing garbage, recycling, and waste. We will likely never be a completely zero waste home, but we have greatly reduced our garbage with some easy steps. I highly recommend reading it – it’s available at the library. We also use Ridwell for the things we can’t find a good reusable substitute for – they do “plastic film” recycling for all those plastic bags, ziplock bags, cereal bags, and now Amazon bubble envelopes. They come pick it up at your house every two weeks. You have to pay for the service, of course, but I find it well worth the price to know they’re not going in the garbage.

  • dev January 7, 2020 (3:46 pm)

    Amazon Prime plastic mailers with bubblewrap inside are garbage material- unless taken to a store, correct?

    • CAM January 8, 2020 (10:33 am)

      Correct. And you have to remove the paper labels. 

  • Liz Latham January 10, 2020 (5:54 am)

    I have a question.  I have started collecting clean plastic wrap from paper towels, tp and other packaging and clean plastic bags.  What about the plastic envelopes that say recycle on them from Amazon – those white and blue envelopes they mail stuff in.  Should we put those in with the plastic recycle stuff.  I am.

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