Dear Recycle Lady,
I have a tape measure that used to automatically return the tape into the housing. However, the retraction feature no longer works so I am left with a 6-foot-long piece of metal. Can this metal tape measure be recycled? Measured too Long
Dear Measured too Long,
If your metal measuring tape is disconnected from its housing, the metal tape will recycle. However, if the metal tape is still connected to the plastic housing it is not recyclable, as the plastic housing is not recyclable. The Recycling Center accepts most all kinds of metal. However, small pieces of metal such as small metal caps, screws and nails are not accepted as they cause problems with the baling equipment. Metal clothes hangers are not accepted for the same reason. However, Greenbrier Valley Cleaners, across the street from the Greenbrier Motors in Fairlea, accepts and reuses them.
Dear Recycle Lady,
What is the Great Bubble Barrier? Curious
Dear Curious,
The Great Bubble Barrier is a low-tech way to intercept and capture river trash, according to the “Free the Ocean” blog. Its purpose is to prevent plastic waste from reaching the sea by using a curtain of bubbles. Installed in a waterway in Amsterdam in 2019, the curtain of bubbles prevents some 8,000 pieces of plastic from reaching the North Sea monthly. Aquatic life and river traffic pass through unhindered. The Bubble Barrier is a perforated tube placed along the riverbed that produces bubbles that guide waste to the riverbanks for collection. The Bubble Barrier catches even very tiny particles of plastic and intercepts 86% of the litter in the rivers. Co-founder Francis Zoet states that this “ingenious lo-fi solution brings new hope in the fight against plastic pollution, proving that sometimes the simplest ideas can create the biggest ripples!”
Dear Recycle Lady,
What exactly is plastic film and what kinds of plastic film can be recycled? New Recycler
Dear New Recycler,
Plastic film is a thin, soft, flexible sheet of plastic made from polyethylene (PE) resin. A resin code classifies the film according to the density of the polyethylene. Plastic films and wraps for packaging are generally No. 2 and No. 4 PE plastic film. Grocery bags are No. 2 HDPE or high-density polyethylene. They are recyclable although they are not marked with a recycle triangle.
Film wraps used for packaging several like items together, such as paper plates, napkins, or paper towels, are No. 4 MDPE or medium density polyethylene. These wraps generally have a No. 4 in the recycle symbol.
A third type of polyethylene is a low-density polyethylene that generally is not marked. Dry cleaning bags and newspaper bags come in this category.
All the items mentioned above are recyclable, if the items are clean, dry and all receipts are removed. Recyclable plastic film is used to make composite lumber for decks, benches and playground sets. It can also be reprocessed into small pellets, which can be made into new bags, pallets, containers, crates and pipe.
However, not all plastic bags are recyclable. This includes prewashed salad mix bags, frozen food bags, candy bar wrappers chip bags and six-pack rings. If in doubt about the plastic film being recyclable, throw it out. It only takes one or two such bags to contaminate a bale of plastic film. The Recycling Center does not recycle plastic film; however, plastic film and wraps can be recycled at Kroger, Walmart and Lowe’s.
Bad news for the environment: According to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, “the carbon dioxide level measure in May in Hawaii averaged 424 parts per million (ppm). That’s 3 parts per million more than last year’s May average and 51% higher than pre-industrial levels of 280 ppm. It is one of the largest annual May-to-May increases in carbon dioxide levels on record.”
Have questions about recycling, or interesting information about recycling? Send questions or requests to recyclelady@greenbrier-swa.com. Dear Recycle Lady is sponsored jointly by the Greenbrier Recycling Center and Greenworks Recycling.
