CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The City of Corpus Christi's Solid Waste Department needs your help keeping the recycling program clean. According to officials, about 30-percent of items put in neighborhood recycling bins to be recycled are dirty, like plastic cups that people throw out that still have liquid inside.
When that happens, the City cannot properly dispose of your recyclables.
"Those items that cannot be easily separated, those can't be recycled," said Paul Bass, assistant director of support services for the Solid Waste Department. "They have to be the individual commodity that can be separated in the processing center."
Below is some information from the City of Corpus Christi on what can and cannot be recycled:
PAPER
- Junk mail, catalogs, and envelopes (no need to shred them)
- Shredded personal documents
- Boxes, such as cereal boxes, pasta boxes, frozen dinner boxes and drink cartons
- Shoe boxes
- Cardboard (flattened)
- Newspaper and magazines
- Phone books
- Copy and computer paper -- white and colors
- Protective paper wrapping on shoes, purses, etc.
PLASTIC
- All plastics #1 through #7 (look for the number inside the triangle)
- Water/soda bottles (with lids removed)
- Detergent, soap, and shampoo bottles (with lids removed)
- Milk jugs
- Butter, sour cream, and yogurt tubs
- Syrup, peanut butter, and squeezable jelly bottles
- Bottle caps are accepted for recycling but must be removed from the bottle or container before being placed in the recycling cart.
METAL
- Clean aluminum, tin, and steel
- Food cans for things like vegetables and soup
- Metal drink cans - sodas, energy drinks, etc.
- Other beverage cans
- Empty aerosol spray cans
WHAT NOT TO RECYCLE
- Glass (Glass Recycling Events are scheduled several times a year.)
- Food waste or liquids
- Containers with food residuals (like pizza boxes)
- Wet paper products
- Yard waste (grass trimmings, branches)
- Styrofoam
- Waxed paper or waxed cardboard
- Motor oil containers or household hazardous waste items
- Garden hoses and electrical cords
- Ammunition
- Fencing
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