To recycle or not to recycle… that is the question! Whether you’re a Shakespeare aficionado or a sustainability one, recycling has been on everyone’s mind as restrictions get more and more complicated. Luckily, we’ve got the scoop on what it means to reduce, reuse and recycle in this day and age.

For context, China is the major importer of all recycled materials out of the US, so much so that it became more cost effective to ship our recycling to another country than within national lines. In 2013, China started restricting what it would accept as recyclable material, which put pressure on the US recycling industry to change its practices. In 2017, China renewed its commitment to sourcing high-quality recycling and by early 2018, they had restricted their imports to only accepting cargo with 0.5% contamination. If too many contaminants end up in the recycling stream, the entire batch is tossed!

So where does that leave us? Due to the new restrictions, there’s extra pressure on US recycling agencies to start separating contaminants from the saleable material. To make it extra complicated, recycling guidelines differ between states, counties and even cities! Fortunately, your local waste and recycling agency has a ton of helpful information on their website, so you know what can and can’t be recycled.

• Woodland and West Sacramento: Waste Management
• Davis: Recology Davis
• Sacramento: Republic Services
• Roseville: City of Roseville
• Vacaville: Recology Vacaville Solano
• Mill Valley: Mill Valley Refuse
• Novato: Recology Sonoma Marin
• El Dorado Hills and Cameron Park: El Dorado Disposal ("What Goes Where”)

While the changing world of recycling may seem overwhelming, we can always make a positive impact on our world! Right now we are in a new time of material use. A good way to go about it is to start thinking about your waste as materials for reuse rather than trash to be thrown away. Reuse is a great option, and if you’re interested in learning more about how, seek out the Green Guru at your local Nugget Markets! If you have other questions or concerns, our Sustainability Coordinator would also love to hear from you at sustainability@nuggetmarket.com.