From the City of Raleigh’s eNewsletter:
NEW STATE LAW PROMOTES RECYCLING OF PLASTIC BOTTLES
A new state law will ban plastic bottles from trash cans beginning Oct. 1. The intent of the law is to encourage people to recycle the plastic bottles.
“This is a wonderful piece of legislation,” Linda Leighton, waste reduction specialist for the City of Raleigh Solid Waste Services Department, said of the new law. “A great number of our residents would willingly comply and keep plastic bottles out of the landfill, if we make them aware of the new law.”
Ms. Leighton pointed out that since 1991 it has been illegal to put aluminum cans in the trash.
Currently the average Raleigh resident recycles 321 pounds each year. The goal of the City’s Solid Waste Department is to increase that number to 451 pounds per year by 2012, Ms. Leighton said. The ban on placing plastic bottles in the trash should help.
In addition to plastic bottles, the City of Raleigh’s curbside recycling program collects:
* magazines and catalogs;
* white paper, including junk mail;
* corrugated cardboard;
* paperboard, chipboard and paper tubes;
* steel food cans;
* aluminum beverage cans;
* aluminum foil and trays that are free of food debris;
* plastic beverage rings;
* glass food and beverage containers;
* gable top cartons; and,
* aseptic (drink) boxes.
These items — along with ink jet and toner cartridges and cell phones without accessories — can also be taken to any of the City’s seven recycling drop-off centers. Unless otherwise noted, the drop-off centers are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The recycling drop-off centers in Raleigh are located at:
* Jaycee Park, 2405 Wade Ave,;
* Mini City Shopping Center, 4510 Capital Blvd, behind the Taco Bell and adjacent to Food Lion;
* Solid Waste Services Administrative Office at 400 W. Peace St. (7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday only);
* Brennan Station Shopping Center at the intersection of Creedmoor and Strickland roads. The drop-off center is located behind the shopping center off of Brennan Drive. Follow the large white water tower;
* City of Raleigh Yard Waste Center, 900 N. New Hope Road (open Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. only);
* Sam’s Wholesale Club, 2537 S. Saunders St.; and,
* Habitat Wake ReStore at 2420 Raleigh Blvd (open Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed on Sundays and Mondays).
For more information about the City of Raleigh’s recycling programs, including how to obtain a recycling bin or order an additional bin, contact the City’s Solid Waste Services Department at 996-6890 or visit the City’s website at www.raleighnc.gov/recycling.