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Wish-Cycling is just Trash with Good Thoughts

Recycling Myths
Text: Wish-cycling is just trash with good thoughts. Photo: A water bottle and Styrofoam washed up on a beach.

WISH-CYCLING IS JUST TRASH WITH GOOD THOUGHTS! 

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: just because something has the ♻️ symbol — also known as the chasing arrows — does not mean it is recyclable in your local program.

When you put a non-recyclable item in the recycling bin, it does not magically become recyclable. It becomes trash in the recycling stream, where it can contaminate good recyclables, create extra sorting work, or even get stuck, tangled, or wrapped in processing equipment.

That’s called wish-cycling: putting something in the bin and hoping it will be recycled, even when you are not sure it belongs there.

Wish-cycling may come from good intentions, but it can cause real problems, including contaminated loads, higher costs, and potentially dangerous equipment shutdowns.

What you can do:

  1. Ask your transfer station operator if an item is accepted in your local recycling program.
  2. When in doubt, throw it out.

Recycling works best when we recycle the right things.

This material is based upon work supported under a grant by the Rural Utilities Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Rural Utilities Service. Rural Community Assistance Partnership, Inc., is an equal opportunity provider and employer.