Here are the sad facts. Using the EPA’s last statistics for recycling, 292.4 million tons of materials were generated in 2018. That’s almost five pounds of waste per person every day. Of that, only 69 million tons were properly recycled and 25 million tons were composted. That’s only 32.1% that was recycled.There is so much […]

How many electronic devices (phones, laptops, tablets, etc.) does the average American own? The answer may shock you as it’s increased 63% between 2018 and 2025. People own an average of 13 devicesThat’s just small electronics. You’ll have other harder-to-recycle items like refrigerators, electric fireplaces, massage chairs, microwaves, window AC units, portable heaters, and the […]

If you think about all of the plastic and metal recycling you generate each year, you’re probably overlooking a main contributor to waste streams. Personal care items like razor blades, shaving cream, toothbrushes, hair products, perfume bottles, and deodorants all contain metal, glass, or plastic, but can you recycle them?Personal care items are a challenging […]

Battery recycling is one of the most important things your business can do for the environment. Lithium-ion batteries can cause fires in recycling plants and garbage and recycling trucks. Alkaline batteries contain metals and chemicals that shouldn’t be released into the environment.It’s hard to know exactly how many batteries end up in the landfill. CalRecycle […]

Recycling is everything in today’s single-use world. While your grandmother or, perhaps, great-grandmother made many things from scratch and reused the same set of canning jars over and over, today’s consumer buys something to use until it’s gone and then recycles it.In 2018, 3.1 million tons of glass containers were recycled. That breaks down to […]

What do you do with your plastic bags when they’re no longer needed? Do you put them in the trash? Do you put them in your curbside container and hope for the best? Plastic bags are not easily recycled through conventional means. Yet, they’re not a great item to throw in the trash either. It’s because […]

Life in a busy urban area creates challenges when it comes to waste disposal. Even with city-wide recycling and waste management programs, the lack of space and reliance on public transportation make recycling difficult. If you have a car and can drive to a drop-off center, it can be an all-day venture and costly when […]

Have you been following California’s pair of nesting Bald Eagles that had three chicks hatch in 2025? If so, you watched as Jackie ended up with a fishing line dangling out of her beak after eating some fish, which left her unable to feed her chicks until she got it dislodged from her throat. It […]

A British study found that paper and cardboard recycling rates decline by 40% during the winter. Why is that? Much of it comes down to contamination from snow and ice. The problems occur both in curbside collections and at recycling facilities. RecycleNation helps you take steps to prevent recycling from ending up in the trash. Winter’s […]

In 2018, Americans generated 35.7 million tons of plastic waste. Some plastics are recyclable, but not all of them are. Less than 10% of plastic items are properly recycled. HDPE (29.3%) and PET (29.1%) are the types of plastic with the highest recycling rates. Some people don’t recycle as they should due to confusing policies […]