Recycling FAQs

Written by GreenWorks staff with help from Curbside Management

Asheville GreenWorks mission is to inspire, equip, and mobilize individuals and communities to take care of the places we love to live. That includes recycling education! Though our organization is not a recycling facility, we do host our Hard 2 Recycle collection events 4 times per year in Buncombe County and twice in Henderson County. And we strive to educate the general public about recycling in our area.

We receive A LOT of questions about recycling - what can be recycled?, what can't be recycled and why?, where can it be recycled? We want you to know everything that we know, so here are the top items that GreenWorks receives questions about. We know that recycling can be hard to keep up with. Reach out to us if you have other questions at [email protected] or 828-254-1776. Thanks for doing your part to recycle right!

BONUS Tips

1. Repair, repurpose, or regift before you recycle! Check out community Facebook pages like WAX, Buy Nothing Asheville, and the marketplace, or your own social media and other networks to see if your items can benefit someone else in the community.
2. Utilize the City of Asheville's Waste Wizard to search for solutions to items that can't be recycled in your curbside bin. 
3. Recycle items throughout the year, especially large items - this helps make life easier for us at Hard 2 Recycle events. 
4. Precycle - due diligence goes a long way when considering how you can replace needed items. Research companies who offer no or low-waste shipping, purchase items that can be easily reused or recycled when you're done. And consider buying an item second-hand instead of new.
5. Those blue bags aren't recyclable! - As misleading as it is, those blue "recycling" bags are not recyclable! They go to the landfill just like all other plastic bags that you may put in your bin. Collect loose items in your curbside bin, or use paper bags if you need to transport them.
6. When in doubt, throw it out - We hate throwing things away, too. But the reality is that recycling is not the solution to waste in our country and there is already a huge burden on recycling facilities. If you've made your way through this entire post, utilized the above resources, and still don't know what to do - that item may need to go to the landfill. DON'T fall victim to "wishful recycling" - a practice of putting everything in your recycling bin in hopes that someone will recycle it. You'll likely end up contaminating entire batches of recycling (which means those batches go to the landfill), and will put a strain on the workers and companies who have to sort through your recycling and pull those items from the line.​

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WHERE TO RECYCLE...

* Please note that "landfill" does not refer to throwing these items away but refers to recycling programs at the Buncombe County Landfill

Old electronics - including cords, appliances, and computer accessories

1. Biltmore Iron and Metal Company: These folks are our partner for Hard 2 Recycle so rest assured knowing that some very good people are taking care of properly disposing your items! (They take a lot of other things too, see their website for more information)
2. Landfill: fees may apply
3. Best Buy
4. Hard 2 Recycle

Styrofoam

1. Publix: food grade only: egg cartons, takeout clamshells, meat trays, cups
2. H2R events: CLEAN food grade (see above) and packaging; No peanuts, no foam, no insulation. If it snaps when you bend it, we can take it at these events. Please note that we can only accept WHITE PACKING STYROFOAM but can accept any color food grade. Help us out by bagging your styrofoam in clear bags so that our partner can easily see what they're getting - this saves GreenWorks money on purchasing large bags and reduces waste from non-clear bags.
3. Peanuts: Facilities like FedEx, Pack N Post, UPS, and UHaul often accept peanuts for reuse, but call to check first.​ ​

TV/Computer monitors

1. TVs
   1. Landfill on TV recycling days: $10 fee
   2. H2R events: $10 fee
   3. Best Buy: $25 fee
2. Computer monitors
   1. Landfill: $10 fee
   2. Best Buy: $25 fee
   3. H2R: $10 fee for monitors 17+ inches

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Plastics

1. When recycling plastics, focus on SHAPE and SIZE, not the # or symbol - What do we mean?.... Read more here!
2. Rigid plastics are products that do not give easily when squeezed. Many are large, bulky items like lawn chairs, buckets, toddler toys, broken plastic shovels and sleds, etc. These cannot be recycled in your blue bin or elsewhere in our area. Please try donating or repurposing.
3. Microwave containers - everyone mentions or shows black specifically  Does that mean any other color can go in recycling?
   • ​​Microwaveable plastic (clear, black, or otherwise) is not recyclable in Asheville. It’s #5 polypropylene and is resistant to chemical breakdown, so it requires high heat for melting and reprocessing, and therefore is not accepted by any local recyclers
4. Single serving containers
   1. No clamshells are recyclable with Curbie
   2. No sachets like single-serving ketchup packets
   3. Nothing with the film or foil attached (because these are monstrous hybrids and require too much to take apart)
5. Terracycle has brand-specific programs for some single-serving items
6. The Plastic Film Recycling Program: Remember - No wraps/films/bags are recyclable in the blue bin. Recycle ONLY at participating grocery stores.
   
7. PVC pipe - Not recyclable​​​​​

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Juice boxes
Gable top containers are named for the fold at the top of the container that resembles the gable roof of a house (think OJ or half and half containers). Aseptic cartons made from multi-layer packaging that combines layers of paper, plastic, and metal to make food containers, especially for liquids such as orange juice and soups (think juice boxes and broth containers with flat tops).

1. Curbie accepts both types of “tetrapack” boxes for curbside pickup
2. Juice boxes and pouches
   1. Yes to kids juice boxes (but not the straws)
   2. No to drink pouches (like Capri Sun)

Shredded Paper

1. Asheville Waste Paper Company
2. Landfill
3. H2R
4. Can be compostable, but only if not plastic-coated or heavily dyed/bleached​

Batteries

1. H2R: any kind
2. Lowe's Home Improvement: rechargeable only
3. Landfill: any kind
4. BIMCO: lead-based
5. Batteries Plus Bulbs: any kind

Light Bulbs (if intact)​

1. CFL bulbs
   1. Lowe's Home Improvement
   2. Home Depot
   3. Landfill on Household Hazardous Waste Days
   4. Batteries Plus Bulbs
2. CFL tubes
   1. Landfill on Household Hazardous Waste Days
   2. Batteries Plus Bulbs
3. All others
   1. Batteries Plus Bulbs
   2. Landfill disposal

Old books, especially large ones like encyclopedias or other sets

1. Donate if they are in good condition
2. Recycle at H2R 

Paint and paint cans

1. Paint cans are not recyclable in the blue bin even if empty
2. Paint should be recycled at the Landfill on Household Hazardous Waste days 
3. If the can is completely empty and dry, it can be recycled with scrap metal at the landfill, BIMCO, or H2R ​