NEW HANOVER COUNTY — Residents can recycle more materials through the county due to a partnership with the Foodservice Packaging Institute.
“[It] is very exciting as it will help keep everyday containers so many of us use out of the garbage and our landfill, while also giving them a second life as a reusable product,” Recycling and Solid Waste Director Joe Suleyman said in a release.
Single-use paper products that restaurants and markets often used to package takeout items are accepted. This include to-go cups, as well as cartons, such as those containing milk, juice, stocks or broths.
In addition to the paper items, some No. 5 plastic containers also are accepted; the number five will be inside the recycling triangle logo. Acceptable products include shampoo, body wash or lotion bottles, and tubs that hold yogurt or sour cream. “Spiral-wound” containers — holding unbaked dough products, for instance — and tubes containing stacked potato chips also are welcomed.
Before recycling, it’s imperative to empty the containers and give them a light wash to get rid of residue, according to the county.
Last year, the NHC Material Recovery Facility (MRF) team sorted and packaged more than 42,000 tons of recyclable materials. They are shipped off to be processed and reused at facilities region wide.
“The amount of usable space in our landfill is becoming smaller each day and we know that recycling is a way to help address this issue,” Suleyman added in the release.
Items will be recycled through City of Wilmington, Carolina and Kure beach’s curbside pickup service. The county has seven recycling centers as well. A list of all recyclable items can be found here.
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