When the opportunity to recycle our soft plastics arrived in the country a few years back, householders breathed a collective sigh of relief. Then, just as quickly as the opportunity arose, it was withdrawn, and we were back to filling our rubbish bins with items the Earth couldn’t dispose of. Now, however, soft plastic recycling is back, and drop-off points have slowly been picking up pace around the country. The response has been overwhelming, and the collection of this material is helping to build plastic posts that are used in a number of ways, from vineyard and farm fencing, to retaining walls and raised gardens. For many of us, there is still huge confusion as to what can go into our soft plastic recycling bags, especially as more and more packaging manufacturers rise to meet the challenge of producing recyclable soft plastic. To help you meet the challenge, we have the following useful tips.
Foiled!
Not all ‘foil’ is actually tin foil. Many types of, what appears to be foil packaging, is actually soft plastic in disguise – the ‘foil’ is just a coloured coating. With some exceptions, this packaging includes crisp packets, sweet wrappers, pet food, and even coffee bean bags. If you’re not sure, check the back of the packet carefully for a ‘soft plastic’ recycling symbol.
Just a phone call (or email) away
It’s usually suggested if packaging ‘bounces-back’ after having been screwed up, it’s not really soft plastic at all. However, this well-meant advice can be confusing (as you’ll realise if you’ve ever tried to screw up a coffee bean bag, only to have it spring back into shape again). If in doubt, first check the back of the packaging label for the soft-plastics symbol. If it isn’t there, look for a contact phone number or email address, and ask the supplier if the packaging is suitable for soft plastic recycling. This may seem laborious, but once you have the information, you can share it with friends and family, and on social media, to save others time.
Encourage
If the supplier of a product you use frequently isn’t using soft-plastic or some other recyclable material to hold their goods, encourage them to do so by actively asking them to take your concerns to management. Where appropriate, advise them you will be purchasing from an alternative supplier until their packaging changes.
Your local soft plastic drop-off point can be found here. If you live in an urban area and you don’t have a drop-off point, encourage a larger local store to support the scheme. If there are no takers, contact Soft Plastic Recycling to see if you or a local community group can organise your own drop-off point.
Remote recycling
It can feel frustrating to live far away from a soft recycling collection point, or to have difficulty accessing one, but where there’s a will, there’s a way, and NZ Post can help. NZ Post is currently trialling a soft plastic courier-collection bag. It is specially designed to take soft plastics directly to their end-use point. The soft plastic courier bag measures 400mm x 430mm, and holds the amount of soft plastic produced by an average household every 2-3 weeks. The special courier bags cost $7, and while that may seem like yet another expense, remote households often have to pay to deposit their rubbish, anyway. By removing soft plastic from your household waste, you are significantly reducing the amount of rubbish you need to take to landfill.
Soft plastic recycling is good for the environment. But, even better, is to buy goods from a bulk supplier where you can fill your own reusable containers. Good luck with your efforts to reduce and recycle.