As we do not want more plastic in Georgia’s landfills, it is important to make sure it is recycled. It is not a question about dumpster rental availability, it is a question about the sustainability of the state and the nation!
Should you compress a water bottle before throwing it away? Separate the cap from the bottle? Nest the plastic trays? Here’s what to do and what not to do before throwing this waste in the yellow bin.
Many people compress their water bottle before throwing it in the yellow bin. A harmless gesture, but not to do, because it prevents the bottle from being recycled. When the waste from the yellow bin arrives at the sorting center, it is automatically separated by machines that detect a bottle from a cardboard box or a tray, because they are recycled differently.
If you compress your bottle, the machines do not detect it as a bottle, because it no longer has the shape of a bottle. It is therefore either rejected or mistaken for paper if it is crushed flat.
This is also why waste should not be nested inside each other, they will be rejected because they are not recognized. Similarly, plastic containers must be completely emptied of food remains before throwing them away.
As soon as the detectors at the sorting center see a foreign body, they reject all the waste. Without washing the used tray, run a trickle of water over it to remove the excess. And for a plastic tray that is too soaked in oil, put it directly in the household waste bin because – too greasy – it is not recyclable.
Finally, not all plastics are made of the same material and therefore follow different recycling paths. It is therefore always necessary to separate the lid or film that serves as a cover from the plastic container, as is the case for vacuum-packed ham or a tray of grated carrots for example.
The only exception: bottle caps, which must not be separated. Because sorting centers do not manage small objects, so they must remain welded to the bottle.
Gainesville waste management issues
Gainesville, GA is faced with illegal dumping of waste and the town hall wants to issue massive fines. While illegal dumping is increasing in Georgia, local residents report a poor waste collection system.
In Gainesville there is a showdown over waste collection. Faced with an increasing number of illegal dumping of waste, the town hall wants to issue massive fines to local residents. Abandoning your trash cans in the middle of the street is strictly forbidden and punishable by a fine of up to 1,500 dollars.
Despite the risks involved, dumping is regular in this town in Georgia, enough to annoy residents of Hall County, while the trash cans are placed next to the waste containers: It’s a bit disgusting, people don’t give a damn.
Other residents point out areas with garbage cans that are not practical enough. In the city center, John is struggling: “I have a small cardboard wine box but it won’t fit in it even though it’s smaller than the diameter of a football. People are fed up with it so they put it in front.” The second problem for Andrea, a shopkeeper, is the price. For a year now, residents have had to pay a few dollars more if they put their garbage out too many times.
Too small, too expensive, the system introduced last year doesn’t suit anyone, but Sam Couvillon, mayor, denies it: “It’s about warning all residents that cleanliness is everyone’s business and that those who don’t want to comply with this need to sort, to be a little more attentive to the way in which we throw away waste, will be punished with fines.” At the start of the summer 2024, the city issued 35% more tickets than it would in all of 2023.
