• Editor’s Note: This article is part of a series of recycling Q&A tips from Kane County Recycling Coordinator Jennifer Jarland. Got a question or idea for a recycling tip? Contact Jarland at 630-208-3841 or recycle@countyofkane.org.

Q: Why Do We Need To Leave The Lids On?

Hi, Jennifer!

Are clear plastic containers from berries or salads recyclable?

Why are lids necessary for recycling other plastic and glass?

Thanks for the info.

— Joy

A: You Don’t Absolutely Have To Leave Caps On, But It’s Good To Do

Hi Joy!

To clarify, lids and caps are not necessary in order for the container to be recycled.

The guidelines state to “replace lids and caps” on the “clean and empty” containers — this is a simple one-line instruction that we hoped would be easy to understand. The intention is to help get the lids and caps recycled, too.

Here are the finer details of that instruction, in more words than we could put on the simplified poster:

The point is, if you wish to recycle the plastic lids and caps, it is necessary that they are attached to the containers they came on. Otherwise they are too small to capture.

That said, thin flat lids to things like lettuce tubs are not recyclable because they will not stay on the containers (they just pop right off) and then are confused with paper because they are thin and flat.

Basically if you can put the plastic cap or lid back on the empty plastic container, (and it stays on when you give the container a good squeeze) then replace the lid or cap onto the clean and empty container and put it in together so that you are recycling as much as possible.

The flat plastic lids that pop off when the container is squeezed should be placed in the trash.

Small plastic caps should be placed in the trash if they are not able to be attached to a container because they are too small to be identified and sorted by the optical resin-identification equipment that sorts the containers, and they will end up coming out the end of the sorting process as trash anyway.

Metal lids and caps from glass jars can be put in the recycling loose because they will be captured by the magnetic sorter. Or they can be put back on the containers to be sorted out further down the line.

Hope that clears up the confusion, let me know if you have more questions.

— Jennifer Jarland, Kane County Recycling Program Coordinator

• o) 630-208-3841, c) 303-563-9409
• email: recycle@countyofkane.org
• www.countyofkane.org/recycling

Read More Recycling Q&A Stories

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• Recycling Q&A: Can I Recycle Milk, Juice And Soup Cartons? (Yes!)
• Recycling Q&A: How About Recycling Spray Or Pump Tops?
• Recycling Q&A: Can I Put Hangers In My Recycling Bin?
• Recycling Q&A: Can I Recycle Boxes For Frozen Foods? (Sadly, No!)
• Recycling Q&A: Caps on Containers? Household Batteries On The Curb?
• Recycling Q&A: Unscrewing the Mystery of Mason Jars And Metal Lids
• Recycling Q&A: Little Bits of Paper? Envelope Windows? Jam Jars With Metal Lids?
• Recycling Q&A: Why Can’t I Put Recyclables In Plastic Garbage Bags?
• Recycling Q&A: Aargh! I’m Surrounded By Plastics!
• Recycling Q&A: What Should I Do With Propane Tanks?
• Recycling Q&A: Should Thermal Paper Receipts Go In The Bin or The Garbage?
• Recycling Q&A: What Can I Do With Shredded Paper If It Can’t Go in Recycling Bin?
• Recycling Q&A: Why Can’t Clean Takeout Containers Be Recycled?
• Recycling Q&A: I’m Still Unclear About Clear Plastic Food Containers