FAQs

In watching markets, cardboard is always the leader, because everything gets shipped in a box. During this slump it was followed by steel, then paperboard - a good way to see it is, the box didn't get ordered to hold the appliance that didn't get bought, & that didn't need a manual to tell how to use it. Plastic slumps in low petroleum price time because it competes with new material made from oil or natural gas, but this is also affected by consumer confidence - if nobody buys the chainsaw, they don't need a case made of recycled plastic.

At this point some markets are gone - we've started making archery bales from PS crating material, as there is just no market for it. I think the more recycling programs look at making useful finished products in their community, the more stability can be reached. Hope this gives some insight on what's going on, out in the trenches.

So, I have replaced some of my light bulbs with the energy saving ones...I have a ton more light bulbs in my house, but I can't bring myself to just throw them away ...I will replace them once they burn out with the energy saving ones...or is it better to throw away the old ones and replace with new?

Yes, I'm going against the green tide here: Your first & best choice is natural light, think about sun pipes, for daytime lighting, CFL's (compact fluorescent lights) are a poor choice in bulbs, as it comes time to replace the "new" or old ones, think about LED's (light emitting diodes). They produce a much better light & don't contain any dangerous materials or have any bad health effects from usage & are recyclable with electronics & guess what (or is that watt?) - they use even less energy that CFL's. If Mr. Gore himself tells you to use CFLs tell him he hasn't done his homework.

I'm probably not the first person you have heard from who is contacting you from the Philadelphia area because of an article on plastics recycling in the newsletter of a local food coop - the Weavers Way Coop in the Mt Airy section of Philadelphia.

Basically my family has recycled all its 1 and 2 plastics for years and takes them monthly or semi-monthly to two local drop off points. Last summer I found it very difficult to buy berries and other items my family eats regularly in containers that were not plastic #6. For a while I refused to buy berries in #6 containers and gave this feedback to the customer service desks where I shopped (mostly Whole Foods and the Weavers Way Coop). Then I decided there had to be another way, so I did some web research, found RSI, and my son and I made it a project to save all of our plastic containers 1-6 and he
separated the 1 and 2 plastics away from the 3-6 plastics. In January I made my first trip to RSI with my 3-6 plastics and was really impressed with all the volunteers and how efficiently everything was sorted.

Then came the article in the Weavers Way newsletter which said, basically, that there is no market nationwide for 3-6 plastics and that even at RSI you are selling them on to a source where they will be incinerated.

Please, please tell me that this is not true and that you have found a way to recycle these plastics. I still have a load of them in my basement waiting for the next time I am headed in a Pottstown direction and can include a trip to RSI. I know of many others in our
area who would be so glad to know that RSI is truly recycling these materials.

I sent a long letter to Weavers Way after the first several letters, but I guess someone there is mad at me. I don't know the reason, but I suspect an answer to a question at the recycling center one day lead to this confusion. I was asked by perhaps a neighbor, was their journey worthwhile? I responded by asking, did the journey take you anywhere? This so confused the person they left shaking their head, even before I could complete the response, it would have further went on to say, if you repeat a journey & it takes you nowhere (growth) it's a waste of energy, if it takes you somewhere, perhaps taking ideas back to your community the journey is worthwhile.

Nothing, except a small portion of the tires (this is blended with coal to make the coal burn cleaner & that will change as the crumb rubber market develops) collected here is sent to burn. There are a lot of recycling companies out there that send things in the oddest directions. I'm very fussy about markets & have developed products in some cases to have local (without smokestacks even in mfg) uses for materials. I also don't ship overseas, this is especially critical with electronics, all de-manufacturing is done in this country. I hope that answered some questions & perhaps you could pass this along to Weavers Way. Another thing to correct is your volunteer statement, most of the operation is run by paid staff.

Would you please comment on each of these other plastic types and let me know if I am doing the proper thing mixing them with the shopping bags, or do I need to keep them separate?

The issue here is what it gets made into. There are some low grade lumber products made from this mix, but you should check with the store. The types of things you mention are low density, high density, linear low density, vinyl and probably some celophane. Some stores only take their own bags, others collect it all and then throw it away.

Do I need to separate screw off tops from milk bottles?

Usually screwtops are PP, #5 & most plastic milk bottles are #2 HDPE. They need to be kept separate here.

What should I do with glossy paper 25 lb dog food bags?

Many people use these as trash bags, but the liners can be torn out and bags sent with cardboard. You might look into other brands or perhaps a bulk food store that will fill your own containers.

A lot of the plastic containers I buy food in have stick-on labels. Some I can peel off but others are impossible. Is it okay to recycle these tubs with the labels still on?

Most everyone that handles post consumer is dealing with markets that can handle labels, not a big deal.

What about waxed paper ice cream cartons?

Well, this really isn't waxed but polycoated. We collect that here along with aseptic packages - there aren't many programs doing this yet, but as paper mills upgrade I think it will get collected more. We do still see some waxed but usually in heavy fruit boxes.

What are your responsibilities at Recycling Services, Inc.?

I wear lots of hats, first of all I am the corporation; I set it up & have served as president since founding, it's my ideas that created it & my dreams that keep it going. So, this involves thinking of projects, finding funds & making them happen; this goes from the collection of a new item, to building electric vehicles or solar projects. I also keep materials moving, train workers on safety issues, often create new uses for collected materials & help market items that get made from the things we collect. In addition I do presentations on durability, composting, preservation of open space & organic farming.

Can you explain the basic recycling process?

Processing here really begins with the public sorting of materials into the various areas. Next it's checked again by the processing help. Many materials get baled to increase weight in loads, but we also do crushing of the glass or granulation of some plastics to prepare the material for the next step in manufacturing. The plants all vary in how it's handled, for example the cardboard mill will unload bales from the trailer, place it on a conveyer, clip the wires, then send it through a pulper, where metal is removed, and new pulp is formed through a screening, rolling & heat process to make new cardboard. Plastic that we make into archery bales is much easier, we add cardboard to the bales on the target side & then wrap in PE film & add extra straps for support.

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What materials can be recycled?

Everything could be recycled, we collect some 45 different kinds of glass, metals, papers, plastics, tires, textiles & electronics. The real issue is how much interest there is in doing more, & how much will be spent to make it happen. Many folks who come here - through thinking about durability, composting & recycling - have reduced their waste by 75 - 95%! The state goal of 35% can happen only if more attention is given to market development & promoting durability. To see a more complete list of what we collect, visit out web site, recyclingservices.org . There are more things that can be collected, we just don't have the space to get into more things. I often serve as a connection for business seeking other uses for items we don't collect.

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Does it cost more to recycle or simply throw everything out?

Depends on market conditions, distance to markets, etc., and also how much the materials must be prepared. We are currently dealing with very poor market conditions for all materials. So, decisions are made; in our case we must have additional fund raisers to make ends meet, this is why I'm doing more metal sculpture. In this case I can take something that now costs about $60 a ton to have recycled & turn it into something like my "iron butterfly" that sells for $35 each. Other items like aluminum cans are usually always decent markets as they can be made right into what they are. Some items are extreme in cost: household batteries cost about 75 cents a pound to have recycled, that's $1500 a ton, but this could be a book in itself; values & conditions change. The most benefits of a program can be found by keeping the markets close.

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Do you feel that recycling benefits our environment? If so, how?

It takes a lot less energy to make new products from old than from new. A good example of this is in the glass industry... The materials in glass are sand, soda ash & lime, all very plentiful & inexpensive, but recycled glass takes much less heat to melt, meaning the furnaces last longer... all cost savings to a manufacturer. My issue has always been saving resources, that's why I stress durability; if something lasts longer, it's much better than grinding it up & making it into something new. The purest form of recycling is reuse, not remanufacturing. Anyway, I never fell into the throw-away trap, as resources must be respected and valued, in spite of market conditions.

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What are some of the disadvantages of recycling?

An area that really bothers me here is how some "junk" just gets made into more junk without any respect for the earth. For years it was very common the manufacturers who feared gov. regulation would make all sorts of promotional stuff for school kids to take home so their parents would feel it's ok to keep buying the new stuff. It's funny, if you watch TV ads, you'll see plastic being advertised when there is a threat of a ban on something or they want to take over another market. You get told how great something like an artificial hip made of plastic is, when what they want is for you to buy beer in plastic bottles. There is a good book that explains this, called "Toxic Sludge Is Good For You", that's about the PR industry in this country.

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Do you think that if people were taught more about recycling, as children or even later in life, that they would make more of an effort to?

Yes, it's really about education, but the message has to be clear. Now there are too many messages, largely about promoting use of products. Children will teach their parents, but there is much more to recycling than reducing waste.

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What do you think that the primary deciding factor is for whether people recycle or not?

If it's convenient and if people have learned of the social benefits, like job training or working with differently-abled workers, and saving resources/energy.

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Why is RSI planning to relocate?

The recycling center that people see on Elm Street in North Coventry is
only one outward or visible expression of the environmental and social values
that Jim and a few other people in the community have held for more than 30
years. The deeper root is the protection and wise use of all resources,
including land, water, air, energy, and people. Of course, recycling is an integral
part of all this.

So to say that RSI is looking for another place just to expand recycling
services is not quite right. There is a broader vision of an education and
resource center that would have the space and capacity to engage people of the
area in other aspects such as sustainable farming, renewable energy resources,
alternative building practices, and so on. While a suitable place to carry
out recycling operations, and perhaps some small manufacturing enterprises, is
desirable, some of us have dreamed about a much larger space to be able to do
more.

There is also a need for RSI to obtain a township sponsor. RSI is a charitable non-profit organization and has the ability to apply for many different types of grants. The only type they cannot get are those grants that are given to governmental entities. So perhaps a stronger bridge can be built to the supervisors and staff of the township so that the
township government would support some programs and/or help purchase a new site.

Do you have collection area, pick up spots? As it stands in Spring city, unfortunately, only an estimated 55% recycle, and that's when it's picked up at their curb. I have an idea if you're interested. If there were bins in one central location in Spring City, say the Elementary School (To raise awareness at school and encourage the school itself to make use of your services), would you be willing to charge the Borough a fee to come pick it up? If so, what would that fee be?

We haven't done curbside collection in more than 20 years, I stick to the drop off program as it's possible to do a lot more items and you don't get cross contamination from mixed materials. In best case with curbside collection, 30% gets thrown out.

As more township curbside collection kicked in, it allowed me to work on other projects & I now do a lot of metal sculpture, solar & wind power projects, electric vehicles, & land preservation projects.