Clothing

Overview

Donating used clothing helps others in need. It is an effective way to reduce the volume of textiles in the waste stream. Also, buying clothing from a resale shop or a garage sale is an inexpensive way to dress well and look great.

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Medicine & Prescription Drugs

Overview

There are increasingly more options for disposing of medicines in the Twin Cities. Many counties and local law enforcement agencies have installed drop boxes or are organizing collection events to give residents the opportunity to properly and safely dispose of unwanted, unused and expired medicines. Programs typically accept all medicines from households, including prescription, over-the-counter and pet medicines.

Properly disposing of medicines is important to prevent abuse or poisoning and protect the environment. Prescription drug abuse is a growing problem, especially among teens, and accidental poisonings from medicines are on the rise. Medicines flushed down the drain or disposed of in the trash can pollute bodies of water, harm wildlife and end up in drinking water supplies.

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Needles & Syringes

Overview

Needles and syringes pose a safety hazard so it is important to dispose of used medical sharps safely to prevent injury and disease transmission from accidental needle-sticks.
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Plastics - "Others"

Overview

Flip over a plastic container, and you're likely to see a familiar symbol. Triangular in shape, the symbol looks like three arrows "chasing" one another around a number. The symbol, and the number contained within, helps identify the type of plastic that the container is made from. It does not indicate that the container can or cannot be recycled.

The number on the bottom of a container indicates the general category of plastic it's made from, but doesn't contain any information on the details of the plastic composition. For example, although a yogurt cup may be made from #2 plastic, (the same type of material as a recyclable milk jug or bleach bottle), it contains different dyes, plasticizers, UV inhibitors, softeners, and other chemicals required to shape it into a cup. That mix of additives changes the properties of the plastic and makes it incompatible with the plastic used to make bottles.  

In the Twin Cities metro area, plastic bottles labeled with a #1 or #2 are collected curbside for recycling. As local recycling markets develop, more types of plastics, such as yogurt, margarine, cottage cheese containers and some take-out containers are being collected for recycling.

The Twin Cities recycled plastic market changes frequently, so the materials collected through residential curbside recycling programs are subject to change.

For detailed information on materials currently accepted in your area, how the materials should be sorted, and when they will be picked up, call your city recycling coordinator or your recycling service provider.

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