Recycling Gets Bigger in Cary
Cary, NC – Starting today, The Town of Cary curbside recycling program has expanded to accept rigid plastics like five gallon buckets and laundry baskets.
Commonly known as #2 HDPE , these rigid plastics items had not been previously accepted by the Town. Now, they can be placed in your curbside bins on regular curbside recycling days.
New Items Accepted for Recycling
- Plastic five-gallon buckets without metal handles
- Plastic soda crates
- Plastic storage tubs and detachable lids, including clean food storage containers labeled #2
- Plastic laundry baskets
- 18-gallon recycling bins
- Garbage cans without wheels or metal attachments/screws
- Plastic lawn furniture free of metal fixtures and attachments, including hinges and screws
If It Doesn’t Fit
There are two ways to dispose of rigid plastics that do not fit into a recycling cart/bin.
- Items can be taken to the Citizen’s Convenience Center (aka the Town Dump) at 313 N. Dixon Avenue.
- Or, a special curbside collection can be scheduled by calling (919) 469-4090.
Both options are available at no charge.
“The current number of recycling trucks, routes and staff to support the Cary Recycles program is sufficient to accommodate these additional materials, making it easy to continue our trend of increasing the number of accepted items that our citizens have been asking for,” said Bob Holden, Solid Waste/Recycling Manager.
Recyclables are taken to the Town’s recycling processor. That company separates the rigid plastics from the general recycling collection and ships it to KW Plastics in Alabama, a company that makes paint buckets out of recycled materials.
Cary Diverts Over 49%
Implemented in 1989, Cary’s recycling program is just one example of how the Town works to lead the state in preserving and protecting natural resources. In Fiscal Year 2013, Cary citizens helped to divert over 49 percent of waste from the landfill.
The last expansion to the Cary Recycles program was in 2012 to include metal and plastic lids; bagged shredded paper; metal cookware; and chipboard/paper egg cartons and drink holders. The Town holds year-round workshops and special events focused on recycling, including biannual Litter Sweeps, Earth Day, Reuse Rodeo and America Recycles Day.
Another tip, to help prevent those who fill the brown container days before a bi-weekly pickup, and then start tossing recyclables into the less-full green container:
Buy a sledge hammer!
Use it vertically, like a “shake weight” to tamp down the recyclables in the brown container.
Been doing it for months! Saw the folks in the fast-food places doing same to their trash containers.
Better yet, if your brown recycling container is smaller than your green trash container, call the Town of Cary Public Works department at 919-469-4090 and request a larger recycling container (same size as green trash container).
It’s free and they’ll simply swap out your current small one for the larger one at your next pickup.
We also have a cooperative agreement with a neighbor. If one of our containers is full and theirs isn’t, we put our materials in their container and vice-versa.