Learn Recycling Rules
A common sticking point for people who want to declutter is their desire to do the ‘right’ thing with the items they discard. Often, this comes in the form of wanting to recycle everything.
Unfortunately, many people don’t have accurate information about what can and cannot be recycled. There are many myths that I hear when it comes to recycling:
Styrofoam is recyclable
All plastic can be recycled
Clothes have to go in the trash
Boxes can be tossed whole into the recycling
And many more…
The rules about recycling actually vary by location and other resources. The first step for everyone is to go to contact their local trash and recycling resource or check out their website. This might be the city, town transfer station, building management, or private disposal company. Learn what items they take for recycling and how they must be handled. For example, does cardboard need to be broken down, do they only take plastic containers with certain numbers, or do they require that the items be in a certain type of bag or container for disposal?
Second, look into other local recycling options. There are often local resources such as textile recycling pick up or cell phone donation bins, and plastic bag recycling at grocery stores.
If doing the ‘right’ thing with items is important to you, start by doing some research. I’m sure you don’t want to burden the system by putting things in your recycling that shouldn’t be there, and it’s not a good idea to hold onto things at the expense of your own peace just because you’re stuck. A little bit of knowledge about the process will make it easier for you to get started and might unstick that block you’ve been experiencing.
