Recyclable Materials_
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According to the EPA, Paper represents 33.9% of the 251 million tons of waste produced by U.S. residents.
While it has one of the highest recycling rates, only a little over 50% of paper is recovered. This means that 41.3 million tons of paper still goes into a landfill or is incinerated each year. That is equivalent to 16.5 billion reams of standard office paper.
Recycle your paper every time. The number one way we recommend to reduce your household waste is to recycle 100% your paper all the time.
Paper products account for nearly half of all nondurable goods used. This includes newspapers and magazines, even phone books.
A good way to reduce paper waste is to eliminate these products from our lives. Try using the internet to access news and magazines. Also, give the phone book company a call and request being taken off their list.
Quick Facts:
>> Recycled paper saves 60% of the energy used on virgin paper.
>> Recycling 1 Ton of Mixed Paper Saves:
>>> 3.3 yds3 of landfill space
>>> 17 trees
>>> 7000 gal. of water
>>> 185 gal. of gas
>>> 60 lbs of air pollution
While only accounting for less than 1% of the waste stream, there are still 1.94 million tons of aluminum
containers produced each year.
Like paper, aluminum cans have one of the highest recycling rates at 45.1%.
It is also one of the easiest and quickest products to recycle. The average can will take 60 days to go from your recycle bin back to the shelf. For this reason, canned beverages are recommended over plastic containers.
The next time you have a choice between a plastic or aluminum container, consider the benefits that aluminum offers in its disposal.
You can also invest in a can crusher to help eliminate the volume of cans you store before recycling them. While it is not impossible, this is not as easy with plastic containers.
Quick Facts:
>> Recycled aluminum requires 95% less energy to process than virgin stock.
>> Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for 3 hours or a 100 W light bulb for 4 hours.
>> Enough aluminum is wasted to rebuild the U.S. commercial jet fleet each year
Plastic makes up 11.7% of municipal solid waste. According to EPA estimations, that is 29 million tons of Plastic per year.
The recycling rate for plastics is very low. Depending on the type of plastic, the rates can range from 6 to 30 percent. Number 1 and 2 plastics (water bottles and milk jugs) exhibit the highest recycling rate at 30% each.
However, when you consider that the conservative estimate for a plastic bottle decomposing in the landfill is 1 million years, the 30 percent recycling rate is alarming.
Knoxville offers Mixed Plastic (numbers 1-7) drop-off, which means you don’t have to sort it. Just make sure it is clean. The only thing not allowed is styrofoam.
The following are the various types of plastic:
>> 1 PET – Carbonated drink bottles, water bottles
>> 2 HDPE – Bottles for milk and soaps/detergents, cereal box liners
>> 3 PVC – Food trays, plastic wrap, and shampoo bottles
>> 4 LDPE – Grocery bags and bin liners, bread and frozen food bags
>> 5 PP – Yogurt and margarine tubs, and microwaveable meal trays
>> 6 PS – Vending cups, plastic cutlery, CD cases
>> 7 OTHER – Any other plastics not in other categories
Steel cans are a great example of recycling at work. With one of the highest recycling rates at 62%, steel cans complete the recycling loop by containing a minimum of 25% recycled steel content.
Steel cans are a small percent of our waste stream, but overall metals represent nearly 10% of our generated waste. Steel creation from raw materials is very costly, and the steel industry has been using the benefits of recycling for over 150 years.
Nearly all other metals are recyclable. Copper is another example of an easily recycled metal that benefits us by lowering wire costs. Steel is relatively easy to recycle, because it can be sorted out from other recyclables using magnets.
Each drop-off center in Knoxville has a container for steel cans. Please do your part by sorting them.
Metal theft is increasingly becoming a problem. Please do not take metal that is not yours. Even taking metal
out of curb side bins is illegal. That is how all of the recycling programs are funded.
Quick Facts:
>> More steel is recycled each year in the US than plastic.
>> Over 100 million steel cans are used every day in the US.
>> 75% of the energy used in creating steel from raw materials is saved by recycled steel.
>> One ton of recycled steel saves 2,500 lbs of iron ore, 1,400 lbs of coal, and 120 lbs. of limestone.
>> Steel cans have a minimum of 25% recycled content and often it is 100%.
Charlie Morgan says:
December 6, 2008 at 9:59 pmWhere can styrofoam be recycled??? This is been a concern of mine for the past 7 years I’ve lived here.
Education says:
December 7, 2008 at 2:57 pmCharlie, right now there is not anywhere to recycle Styrofoam in this area. The cost of transporting such a light and bulky material prevents collection from being practical. Our best advise is to avoid it when possible, and to find a reuse for it when you do get some.
Zach says:
December 10, 2008 at 12:20 pmCan these items be recycled in Knoxville:
Chip bags (with the shiny interior)
Prescription bottles
Plastic caps from bottles and milk jugs
Pringle and nut containers
Aluminum foil
Metal bottle caps
Napkins and paper towels
Thanks!
Education says:
December 11, 2008 at 9:32 amZach, here’s the skinny on materials in Knoxville:
Chip Bags – They are a combination of multiple materials, and are not recycled here. Look for the ones without the foil.
Prescription Bottle – They go in the Mixed Plastic.
Plastic Caps – They go in Mixed Plastic.
Pringle & Nut Containers – They cannot be recycled in Knoxville, since they have both aluminum and paper and plastic combined. But you can pull that plastic lid off and put it in the mixed plastic.
Aluminum Foil – It is not recycled in Knoxville.
Metal Bottle Caps – These should be okay in the steel can bin.
Napkins and Paper Towels – It depends on how clean they are. If they are clean and dry, then they may not reject them. The best thing to do is replace them with reusable towels. There are several good alternatives out there other than just cotton. Shop around. If you still have napkins and paper towels though, you can always just compost them. They are excellent for that.
Dave Penegar says:
December 27, 2008 at 1:28 pmCan I receyle the holiday wrapping paper and/or paper tissue not-soiled at the local drop off centers?
Thanks,
Dave
Education says:
January 3, 2009 at 9:00 amDave, the wrapping paper should be fine to go in the mixed paper bins. The tissue paper should also be alright in there too.
Jon says:
January 3, 2009 at 1:35 pm1. Will the Hazardous Waste Facility off Baxter accept old gasoline?
2. For the community ewaste recycling events, small tv’s were listed. What is the largest tv that can be brought?
Thanks!
Education says:
January 6, 2009 at 9:47 amJon, 1. The HHW Facility will accept old gasoline or any loose liquid in amounts up to 10 gallons. 2. As for the e-cycle event, they will accept TV’s as long as they aren’t a console TV (aka the wood surrounding). The gentlemen I contacted said that they originally limited it to 19″, but that they will take larger ones.
Jon says:
January 3, 2009 at 1:42 pmSorry, forgot one more question.
Also at the Hazardous Waste Facility. For household cleaning agents. Does this include empty bottles that had the cleaner in it? For example, I use a complete bottle of Drano. No Drano is left, except for maybe a small film or residue on the inside of the bottle. Can/should this bottle be brought the the Hazardous Facility versus recycling in mixed plastic?
Thanks again.
Education says:
January 6, 2009 at 11:21 amThe empty bottles from the Hazardous Waste has to be placed in the landfill.
Old TV says:
February 1, 2009 at 7:55 pmHi, I want to know where I can recyle old TV set. The one I have is not working, I know goodwill will not take it. I have been searching online but didnt get any clear idea. I’d like to know the facility’s address and contact number.
Thank you.
Old TV says:
February 1, 2009 at 7:55 pmBy the way, I live in Knoxville County. Thank you!
Education says:
February 2, 2009 at 9:53 amOld TV, you just missed the Knox County e-cycle event. They normally hold them each January, so if you can hang on to it until then it’d be a free drop off. At the KRC, we take tv’s (as long as they’re not a console tv) for $0.50/pound. We charge because it costs us money to dispose of them. Please call us at 865.525.9694 to set up a time to drop it off and get directions, if you’re interested.
Jim W says:
February 8, 2009 at 2:27 pmCD and DVD read write media. Can it be recycled as plastics? I am not recycling any sensitive data.
Education says:
February 9, 2009 at 8:48 amJim, they cannot be recycled as mixed plastics due to the metals that are sandwiched between the plastics. You can mail the disks to the CD Recycling Center.