How to Prepare Recyclables

Recyclable materials are collected all together at CVSWMD Recycling Depots and are later sorted at the Materials Recovery Facility in Chittenden County. This eliminates the problems that occur when items are improperly sorted. And, it makes it a whole lot easier for everyone to recycle!

Please note: We continue to collect cardboard and paper bags separately. The volume of these materials recycled at our depots makes it easier for us to keep them separate.

Recycling Guidelines

Please prepare items according to the following guidelines. If you have any questions or make a mistake in sorting, the depot attendants are available to help.

FIBERS

Boxboard, Wet-strength paper (i.e. six-pack holders)

No whiteboard (i.e. frozen food boxes) or corrugated cardboard.
How to tell if it's white board? Tear an edge — if it's white inside, it's whiteboard; if it's brown or gray inside, it's recyclable boxboard.
Paper beverage holders (i.e. for six-packs and 12-packs) are now collected for recycling.

Magazines, Catalogs, Phonebooks, Junk Mail, Paperback Books

Keep them loose — no strings or bags, please.
Open junk mail and sort it by recyclable and non-recyclable parts. For instance, envelopes and fliers are usually recyclable; stickers and other promotional items included with the junk mail are not recyclable.
All material must be clean, flat and dry.
Paperback books (glue or staple-bound books) are now accepted for recycling; hardback books are not accepted. Spiral-bound booklets: Please remove the plastic or wire spiral binding and recycle the paper.

Mixed Office Paper

No paper clips.
Staples and window envelopes can be mixed in.
Please put shredded office paper in clear plastic bags.

Newspapers

Keep them loose — no strings or bags, please. Inserts OK.
Must be clean and dry.

CONTAINERS

Please Note: Any empty container that contained a hazardous product must go in the trash. Containers that still contain the hazardous product must be brought to a hazardous waste collection.

Glass: Clear, Brown and Green

Rinse and remove caps/lids — these are not recyclable.
No window glass or drinking glasses mixed in and no ceramics please.
Labels are OK
Please avoid breaking the glass.

Plastic #1 - #7

Look on the bottom of containers for a number surrounded by the recycling arrows. All #1 - #7 plastics are now recyclable. The following are typically #1-#7 plastics:
- Bottles and jugs for soda, condiments, beauty products, detergents, cleaners, milk, juice, etc.
- Dairy tubs (i.e. yogurt and sour cream containers)
- 5-gallon pails
- Clear plastic hinged take-out containers
- Flower pots and trays
- Hard plastic frozen food trays.
Rinse containers and discard plastic caps and handles before recycling. Metal handles can be recycled with scrap metal.
NO Styrofoam, toys, plastic bags, bubble wrap and other packaging materials, laundry baskets, sleds, house wares, office products, or motor oil containers, please! And no biodegradable plastics (PLA).
Please note: There are size requirements for plastics recycling. The minimum size is 2 inches on any 2 sides; the maximum size is 2 feet on any one side. Please see the depot attendant with any questions.

TIN AND ALUMINUM

Rinse cans
Clean aluminum pie plates and foil are also accepted.
Scrap metal collected seperately.
Aerosol cans accepted only if empty, caps removed and not containing hazardous materials.

CORRUGATED CARDBOARD

Note: cardboard is collected separately.

Must be dry and flattened.
Keep it loose — no string or bags.
Recycle brown paper bags with cardboard.
No boxboard or other fibers mixed in.
Look for the inner ripple between the outer layers to confirm it's cardboard.
No wax-coated cardboard or pizza boxes.