The only two plastic items that can be put in your commingled recycle bin are 1) plastic bottles (clean, NO lids, neck smaller than the body of the bottle), and 2) plastic tubs (clean, NO lids, cottage cheese, sourcream, salsa, etc.). Plastic bags and film can be taken to the Ashland Water Street Recycle Depot and to “some” big box stores (e.g., Home Depot, Lowes, major grocery chains most located in Medford.) Packing peanuts can be taken to the Ashland Water Street Recycle Depot and handed to the attendant, and you may also go there and ask for packing peanuts for your personal use.

Until the price of oil rises and makes the commodity of recycled plastic competitive with raw materials, there isn’t a market for it to be recycled at this time. You can take it to Portland, but it needs to be sorted per Portland’s rules. Check with a friend or relative in Portland to find out what that is.

The best we can recommend at this time is to really make a concerted effort to not bring the plastic into your homes in the first place. Examine your purchasing patterns and see if there is any room for buying in bulk, making/growing your own, buying from a local farmer, etc. Find creative ways to reuse that plastic…e.g., Dorothy Gardner uses the lids to put beer in to trap slugs in her garden. I reuse many plastic containers for storage and now homemade cleaning products. It is a personal decision as to whether to keep holding onto the plastic hoping for the return of the plastic roundup or throwing in the regular trash. I do think this time affords us an opportunity to really do a personal inventory and examine our personal purchasing habits. We vote with our dollar.

Ann Hackett and Adrienne Kimmy
EarthKeepers