In the case of #6 (polystyrene) plastic, most cities that do accept that material for recycling are only accepting the rigid form of polystyrene (e.g.
Everyone should check the website or information provided by their local recycling, public works, solid waste, or other municipal agency overseeing local waste issues to find out what is recyclable where they live. For example, one city might accept a particular material in their recycling that isn’t accepted in a neighboring city.
To set up an account call 54 and ask for Daven, or inquire by email. You must have an existing recycling account to request a pickup. About this kind of plastic, she said: “every locality in the US has different protocols for what materials can be recycled and how they collect those materials, and those differ from place to place. We can drive to your business and pick up your Styrofoam for an fee. Just to double-check my internet research, I sent a note to Darby Hoover at the Natural Resources Defense Council. Food contaminated polystyrene packaging is. What does Foam 6 become when it’s recycled? White block polystyrene can be placed in specially marked recycling bin at the Fitchburg Recycling drop off site. Foodservice containers or trays need to be rinsed, with the food picked out of them.Coffee/soda cups may need to be rinsed to be recycled (depending on your community’s requirements).Note that polystyrene foam and rigid polystyrene both have the same polymer number (#6), so check to make sure which your community accepts or doesn’t accept in curbside and/or dropoff. It can also be made into packing peanuts. If you don’t see your community located there, it’s best to go to your city’s website to get a list of their recycling criteria. Recycled styrofoam can be made into many other items like building materials, insulation, even some hard-plastic items like plastic moldings. Here is a recycling locator that I found online to make it easy. The bad news is that many communities require a dropoff at a special location that recycles these items, or do not collect polystyrene foam products for recycling at all. The good news is that polystyrene foam (#6) is technically recyclable. If it has the number 6 in the middle, then you know that you’re reading the right article.□ If you’re looking at your foodservice containers (like cups, food trays, clamshell “to go” containers) check on the bottom to see the number in the middle of the recycling symbol.