Recycling Workshop Educates Residents About New, Stricter Guidelines
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - The city's new recycling rules have people confused about what to toss in the blue bin and what to toss in the trash.
A workshop was held Wednesday night to help people figure out what's what.
Shredded paper is no longer accepted at the curb and will need to be bagged and taken to a drop-off location to be recycled.
The City of Pittsburgh is still collecting glass curbside and is also exploring separate glass roll-offs that will be put in place sometime this month.
Items such as coffee cups, ceramics, plastic bags, bubble wrap and paper plates are not recyclable.
Aluminum and steel cans can be recycled after they are rinsed and the lids are removed.
Plastic bottles and jugs under three gallons can be recycled as well, as long as the caps are removed.
The top half of a pizza box is acceptable, but the greasy, bottom portion is not to be put in the recycling bin.
Pittsburgh is focused on saving landfill space and cleaning up the recycling stream.
"We're focusing on cleaning up the stream, we're also looking at grants to get more blue bins out to the public that will also help to ultimately clean up the stream," said Teresa Bradley, Pittsburgh Recycling Coordinator.
Over the next two years, the city will distribute about 13,000 recycling containers to phase out blue bag recycling.
The Bureau of Environmental Services says waste should be reduced first and people should reuse as often as possible.
"I think it has to do with what we want to be as a city and move forward with diverting materials but diverting them properly," said Bradley.
More workshops will be held to improve recycling throughout the city.
Upcoming workshops:
June 12, 2019
- 9:00 - 10:30 a.m. - Commercial session
- 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. - Residential session
Where: Construction Junction, Community Room - 214 North Lexington Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15212
