Hello recyclers!

Our Columbus location has changed from Hampton Court across from the Womack Building to the Ward Street Extension behind First Citizens’ Bank and the Polk County Museum. Our pickup at Green Creek is now every Wednesday, not every other Wednesday.

Our pickups at Tryon at Harmon Field on Monday and Saluda on Tuesday on Ozone Drive remain the same. All pickups are from 7 a.m. to noon.

In this letter, I’d like to talk about what is not recyclable since there is considerable confusion here.

The key word is containers. The plastic that is recyclable is in the form of containers that hold either food or household products. These have the numbers one through seven stamped in a triangle on the bottom.

Virtually all other plastic, like coat hangers, packing, bubble wrap, drinking straws, plastic implements, plastic bags, etc., are not recyclable.

The following metal items are not recyclable: coat hangers, hardware, tin foil or tin pie pans, other metal tools or gadgets. Containers either metal or plastic that have held poison, pesticides, herbicides, gasoline, anti-freeze, etc. are not recyclable.

Our new categories are as follows:

• Aluminum drink cans

• Plastic containers and steel cans together

• Glass (bottles only)

• Corrugated cardboard

• Mixed paper (includes books, magazines, paper in any form)

Some other items that have caused confusion are other aluminum cans like cat food cans. They go in with the plastic.

Glass, other than bottles that have held food or household products, is not recyclable. Examples are ceramics, drinking glasses, window glass, mirrors, etc.

Our new rule is that when the trailer is full, we leave. So far, that has only happened a few times. I invite you all to come early to be sure your recyclables are taken.

A warm thank you to all our recyclers. Many now crush their plastic milk jugs and other large plastic containers. That helps us get a lot more material on the trailer.

Many also break down their corrugated cardboard boxes, which frees up the attendant to help those folks who are insecure about climbing the stairs up onto the trailer.

Your help is much appreciated.

Rich Robinson, Dan Dworkin, Recycling attendants