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Recycling Tips

Primary Recycling

Waste Management Services has two primary recycling categories: Paper and Mixed Containers. All paper recycling should be placed in the blue recycling dumpster labeled “PAPER” while all mixed containers should be placed in the blue recycling cart labeled “CONTAINERS”. Both are located at the buildings loading dock. Here is a list of acceptable and non-acceptable items for recycling.

Paper Recycling

Acceptable

White and colored office paper
Copy paper wrappers
Frozen food boxes
Blueprints
Envelopes - with or without windows
Newspapers, magazines, catalogs, paperback books
Manila folders, cardstock, food boxes
Gift-wrap and greeting cards without foil
Corrugate cardboard-emptied and flattened

Carbonless forms
Junk Mail
Phone directories
Empty tissue and dry food boxes
Shredded Paper - in clear plastic bags
Hanging file folders- wire hanger removed
Spiral or plastic bound documents - without metal or paper

Not Acceptable

Copy paper wrappers
Thermal fax paper
Tyvek envelopes *
Food wrappers
Tissue, paper towels, napkins
Photographs

Carbon paper
Plastic covers and bindings
Hardcover books *
Frozen food boxes
Paper cups, plates
Wax coated cardboard

Mixed Containers Recycling

Acceptable

Glass bottles and jars
Aluminum cans and foil
Empty aerosol cans
Paper milk, juice cartons, and juice boxes

Ceramics and non-food glass
Steel cans and metal
#1 and #2 plastic bottles
Small scrap metal (under ten pounds)

Empty and rinse all containers, please remove all lids from bottles. Recycle metal lids, trash plastic lids.

Not Acceptable

Food waste or liquids
Plastic caps or lids
Straws
Electrical appliances or light bulbs
Film
Batteries **

Wide mouth plastic tubs
Foam and plastic tableware
Plastic bags
Lab glass
Needles and syringes **

*Items can be recycled but need to be boxed up for pick-up by Waste Management Services

**For proper disposal contact UM Occupational Safety and Environmental Health, 747-1143

Secondary Recycling

Waste Management Services collects many other items for recycling besides Paper and Mixed Containers. We call these Secondary Materials. These items are collected separately from the paper or mixed containers by Waste Management Services. Please box up and label the following items for recycling and reuse. Items that are listed together may be boxed together. Call us at 763-5539 to schedule a pick up.

Hardcover Books
Cassette Tapes, Cassette Cases and VHS Videotapes
Music CD’s, Computer CD’s and CD Plastic (jewel) Cases
Computer Disks (3.5” floppy disks)
Computer & Magnetic Tape (3480 & 3490 data cartridges, 9-track computer tape, 4mm & 8mm tape)
Ink-Jet Cartridges
Transparencies or Transparency Rolls
Photographic Film
Records
Tyvek Envelops
Kitchen and other Household Items/Supplies
Any Office Supplies (ex: binders, hanging file folders, pens, tape, stationary, extra paper, desk organizers, and binder clips)
Packaging Peanuts
Polystyrene 6 Foam Block Packaging (Acceptable foam is rigid, white foam, embossed with a PS6. It snaps when broken. Spongy foam or foam that bends cannot be recycled and should be disposed of in the trash.)
Please bag packaging peanuts in a clear plastic bag separate from foam block packaging.

What happens to all this stuff after it’s picked up by Waste Management Services?

All secondary materials are brought to our department then weighed and inventoried. Items that have been specifically requested for reuse by U of M departments are set aside. Office supply items are picked up by area non-profit organizations for reuse. All other items are sent out to be recycled.

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