Recycling plastics can be tricky:

  • Some plastic items can’t be recycled because they are contaminated (ie an empty motor oil bottle)
  • Some items like Styrofoam can’t be recycled because there is no market for it.
  • Some items can’t be recycled because they are not recoverable at the sorting facility (ie plastic forks, drinking straws, small RX bottle). Click here to watch a video of the sorting process.

This guide will help you to quickly sort out which plastics can be recycled in Arlington’s Curbside recycling program: