WHAT IS IT?
According to the City of Lethbridge, wish-cycling is “the practice of tossing questionable items in the recycling bin, hoping they can be recycled.” Although you might assume that any non-recyclable items thrown into the recycling will get sorted out by recycling centers, this isn’t the case. In fact, non-recyclable items that get mixed in with your cardboard or plastics can actually contaminate these recyclable materials, which leads to these perfectly recyclable products getting thrown into a landfill, not being recycled at all.
HOW CAN WE STOP IT?
Generally (in Ottawa), glass, metal, and plastic items go in your blue bin, while paper products go in your black bin (refer to the City of Ottawa’s Recycling page for more specifics). But what about questionable plastics, like bread bags? Lucky for us, the city of Ottawa has this handy Waste Explorer you can use to search up questionable products to find out how they should be disposed; for example, the explorer says that although your bread bags may be plastic, they should actually be placed in your regular garbage.
It’s also important to remember that some products—like Coffee-Mate creamers—are only recyclable with some preparation. In Coffee-Mate’s case, you’ll need to be sure to completely remove the plastic label on the creamer bottle before throwing the bottle in your blue bin. That said, make sure to read product labels to learn more about the product’s disposal before throwing it out!
So, for the sake of effective recycling, stop wish-cycling! Next time you’re wondering how to recycle something, take a minute to check out the item’s label (if it has one) and your city’s garbage and recycling standards; we promise you—and the planet—will feel better if you’re not just guessing.