Hey, Colorado!

Let’s Join Together to Erase the Waste

Coloradans enjoy our outdoors. We care about our neighbors. And we want our communities to thrive. We can help keep them thriving by recycling, refusing single-use items when possible, and learning how to reduce the amount of waste we create in the first place. 

Many of us already know about the benefits of recycling, but another impactful way to reduce our footprint is by using fewer materials and generating less waste from the start. This can be as simple as printing on both sides of a sheet of paper, drinking coffee out of a mug instead of a disposable cup, turning down plastic utensils when ordering to-go, buying items in bulk instead of individual packages, and bringing your bags while shopping.  

 

Shop Smart and Reuse: 6 Simple Steps to Waste Reduction

· Fight Food Waste. According to the USDA, did you know that between 30-40% of food is wasted? Planning meals, proper food storage techniques, freezing leftovers, and composting are effective ways to reduce the amount of food and packaging that end up in our landfills.

· Buy Big, Buy Less. Buying frequently used household items like coffee or toilet paper in bulk reduces unnecessary packaging waste and saves trips to the grocery store. And when shopping online, choose multiple items to be shipped all at once.

· Make Smart Purchases. Selecting items with little or no packaging means less to throw away, which is less material that goes into landfills. Also, try buying previously used goods (like at a local thrift shop). And when buying new, seek products that are more durable and long-lasting.  Look for the following: Durable. Repairable. Refillable. Reusable.

·  BYO (Bring Your Own). Small decisions like bringing a reusable bag to the grocery store or reusable water bottles and coffee cups to work/school can significantly impact and reduce the amount of waste you create.       

·  Skip the Plastic Utensils. If you don’t need disposable straws, plates, plastic silverware, or napkins with your takeout, don’t take them.

. Opt Out. Convert to electronic billing and remove yourself from catalogs and mailing lists. 


 

 Recycle the Waste You Do Create

Colorado’s recycling rate has improved in recent years, but it is still far behind many other states. There’s so much more we can do and so much to gain!

The small actions we take to keep recyclable materials —like glass bottles—out of our landfills actually make a big difference. When we recycle glass, aluminum, paper, and plastics, we improve both our environment and our economy, since recycling sustains thousands of jobs here in Colorado. So let's keep at it, each doing our part to erase the waste in our beautiful state.

Find Your Local Recycling Center

Kids! Help us Erase the Waste at Home!

Recycling is simple enough for the whole family.
Kids, here are five things you can do to help your family become recycling rock stars.

  • Show your parents how to separate and rinse recyclables.

  • Find extra trash cans, or cardboard boxes, and set them up as recycling bins in bedrooms, the family room, home office and kitchen. This will make it easier to collect recyclables.

  • Start a weekly contest with your family members to see who can recycle the most cans, bottles, metal, aluminum, glass, and cardboard.

  • Help your parents with their shopping list, and think about what you already have before buying new. Turn your old T-shirt into a rag to wash the car or wipe the dog’s feet, and use old yogurt containers to keep leftovers instead of buying new food storage containers. 

  • When you’re out shopping with your family, try to buy products in glass or aluminum containers — those things are valuable to recyclers! 

The Road to Recycling: 3 Tips to Get Started

CDPHE ETW icons_Numbered_ETW Icon-Aluminum Can.png

Rinse it first!

Putting just one food-crusted container into the recycling bin can contaminate the entire load. So, remember to empty and rinse your containers first.

CDPHE ETW icons_Numbered_ETW Icon-Water Bottle.png

Don’t bag it

Bagging recyclables makes things difficult at the sorting facility. Plastic bags get caught in the sorting facility machinery and can cause the whole recycling facility to shut down until the jam is removed. Keep recyclables loose unless your local recycling company tells you otherwise.

CDPHE ETW icons_Numbered_ETW Icon-Plastic Jug.png

Don’t be a wish-cycler

With good intentions, you might be tossing your empty potato chip bags, squeezable food pouches, or frozen veggie packaging into the recycling bin, hoping they can be recycled. From paper towels to straws, items that seem recyclable —but aren’t — can contaminate an entire load, forcing it to the landfill.

Learning which items can and can't be recycled can help put an end to wish-cycling. Go online to find out what items can be recycled in your community.

Recycle Glass in Three Easy Steps

CDPHE ETW icons_Numbered_ETW Icon-Wine Bottle.png

Know

Learn what glass is recyclable in your curbside bin.

Recyclable: Soda, beer, wine, and other drink bottles; pickle, jelly, sauce, and or baby food jars. Clear, blue, green, and brown bottles are all recyclable.

Recyclable only through special programs: Windows, ovenware, lightbulbs, Pyrex, and crystal.  

Not sure? Grab your phone, go online, and check.

Rinse

Make sure to clean out any food or drink residue.

Place

Put your recyclables in your recycling bin or take it to a drop-off center.

What Else Can You Recycle? So Many Possibilities

Artboard 3_2.jpg

Cardboard

The recent surge in online shopping is burying Colorado beneath a mountain of extra cardboard. The good news: Most Coloradans recycle this cardboard. But more than 40% of it still ends up in landfills each year.

Cardboard is one of the easiest materials to recycle. Cardboard is widely accepted at recycling centers across the state. And it doesn’t require any special effort from you to recycle. Just flatten boxes before putting them in the bin or taking them to a local recycling center.

 
Artboard 2.jpg

Aluminum

Aluminum is one of the easiest materials to recycle — and it can be recycled over and over — but you should always check with your local recycling center for any special requirements. Recycling aluminum cans and foil helps to protect our environment and create jobs. Because aluminum cans are so valuable, they help make municipal recycling programs financially viable — toss it in your curbside recycling bin to support your recycling program’s efforts. Aluminum foil is just as recyclable as aluminum cans as long as it’s clean, free of food residue, and is bigger than the palm of your hand.

 
Artboard 5.jpg

Plastics

Most plastic ends up in a landfill. Every year, the average American goes through more than 250 pounds of plastic waste.

If we recycle more plastics, we can prevent pollution by reducing the need to collect new raw materials. And we can create more U.S. jobs in manufacturing and recycling.

Plastic drink bottles and food containers — like water bottles, milk jugs, or yogurt containers — are the most widely accepted types of plastics for recycling. Nearly every recycling center takes them, but you should still check requirements before recycling plastics.

Plastic containers have a small number inside the three-arrow triangle recycling symbol. But not every “number” of plastic is widely accepted for recycling, so check first before throwing your used plastics in the bin.

Disposable plastic items like straws or plastic cling wrap are rarely recyclable. Try to avoid using these items and substitute paper straws, reusable cups, canvas bags, and parchment paper or aluminum foil.

 
Artboard 4.jpg

Organics

If you’ve planted a garden, you’re probably familiar with compost, the nutrient-rich matter that gardeners and farmers use to help grow their plants and crops. Compost is made by combining any type of organic waste, such as eggshells, coffee grounds, food leftovers, greasy pizza boxes, and yard trimmings. Those materials break down and turn into compost.

Composting is an amazing thing that reduces waste, contributes to a sustainable food system, helps tackle climate change, and reduces harmful air and water pollution.

Several cities and counties across Colorado offer curbside or drop-off composting programs. Check with your local waste management company to see if curbside or drop-off composting is available in your area. If not, you can still compost in your own backyard. You can even compost if you live in an apartment.

 
Artboard 1.jpg

Electronics

It is illegal to dispose of electronics in the landfill, which is why unwanted televisions, monitors, and other electronic items pose a challenge. Electronics waste can contain potentially hazardous materials. Responsible recyclers should handle materials in a way that benefits the environment and ensures toxic materials are not exported to developing countries or processed by prison labor. For this reason, it’s best to seek out a recycler that follows strict environmental standards. Make sure your recycler is a certified e-Steward.


Find places in your area to recycle electronics, batteries, lighting and other types of waste.


Glass That’s Recycled
Stays in Colorado

Colorado is unique in that we have a closed-loop recycling system for glass. That means we can collect, process, and transform glass into a new product right here in our state.

It works like this:

  • You recycle your glass bottle or jar in your curbside recycling bin or at a drop-off center.

  • Your recycling is picked up and sorted.

  • The recycler cleans the glass and sorts it further.

  • The cleaned and sorted glass is sold to local bottling companies where it is remanufactured into new beer bottles, ready to repeat the cycle.

In addition to being a wise use of resources, your recycled glass creates jobs here in Colorado. It employs not only the people who work in glass recycling facilities, but also those who ship it and who work for companies that use recycled glass for their products.

Go big with glass.

It’s true that by choosing to recycle your used glass containers, you make a huge difference.

Glass containers are 100% recyclable. That means your used glass can be recycled over and over, forever, with very little material lost in the process.

Making sure your used glass lives on in useful ways, rather than getting dumped in a landfill, saves natural resources and energy. Your choice also powers local businesses that take your used glass and turn it into new products — like food containers, bottles, and road construction materials.

 

Spread the word!

Download and share this PDF to tell your friends and neighbors how easy it is to recycle in Colorado.

In the News

In an interview with Mile High Living, our team talked about how easy and important it is to recycle glass – and other materials too!

Take the "No Glass in the Trash" Pledge!

Join your neighbors to cut down on what we send to the landfill!

Your pledge to take a few small steps to recycle your glass bottles and jars makes a big difference to our environment and our economy.

I will be part of the solution. I will help erase the waste in Colorado by doing my part to recycle all of my used glass bottles and jars. I pledge that in my home, there will be no glass in the trash!

environmentally-friendly-sustainability-man-home-bin-environmental-environmental-sustainable_t20_gLBNe8 (1).jpg

Share your pledge on social media!