Never Recycle These 10 Things

1. Paper Towels, Shredded paper and tissues - These are too small to be sorted and collected at recycling facilities. Also these are often covered in grease, food or things folks have coughed into and these contaminate other recyclables. Shredding paper makes it difficult to handle.
2. Plastic bags - These are not easy to handle and often because they take shapes makes them get stuck in the machinery.
3. Pizza boxes - Once food is stuck on the box it becomes trash, can’t be handled. 
4. Styrofoam - A very bad product. It will take many years to decompose if at all. Do not use at all. 
5. Clothing hangers - Please take back to your dry cleaner. Can’t be recycled because have plastic and paper on them. They land up in landfills in all states other than Florida who incinerates all garbage. 
6. Food Plastic Containers - Most are recyclable provided no food inside of them otherwise they go to landfill.
7. Different types of glass - Broken glass never accepted at recycling center as it could injure workers. Unless it is beverage/food glass, all other glass types have different melting temperature so cannot be used.
8. Energy efficient light bulbs - The energy efficient compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) bulbs contain a small amount of mercury and cannot be recycled. Also dangerous to landfills and pose a health hazard to people and animals. 7 states now ban CFL bulbs finding their way into landfills.
9. Plastic toys/office plastic containers - Plastic toys and office containers contain so many different materials that can’t be separated and recycled. Best is donate to Salvation Army or Goodwill for them to fix and re use.
10. Tea/Coffee beverage paper cups - Disposable coffee/tea cups are not recyclable. They contain a layer of wax that prevents the paper to be removed.