Town residents who drop off their recycling at Newbury’s transfer station will have the option to divert more of their plastic away from landfills. Typically, A.B.L.E. Waste Management hauls away the town’s mixed plastic, glass and metal recycling. It recycles only No. 1 and No. 2 plastics, and all other plastic goes to a landfill. Claude Phipps and John Narowski, who both serve on Newbury’s Solid Waste Committee, organized a new voluntary program: If residents separate No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4 and food-grade No. 5 plastic into another container, the Northeast Kingdom Waste Management District will recycle this expanded range of plastics.
Alternatively, they can continue to recycle only No. 1 and No. 2 plastic with their mixed recycling. “It’s very important that when we ask someone in the town to recycle, that it really is recycled,” Phipps said. “I think it’s unfair … if it ends up going to a landfill.”
Recycling rules can be confusing, so volunteers will be at the Newbury transfer station every Saturday beginning at 8 am from Aug. 7 to Sept. 11 to help residents sort their recycling. “No. 1 and No. 2 (plastic) always have the highest value, no matter where the price of oil is at,” said Shannon Choquette, the outreach coordinator with the Northeast Kingdom Waste Management District.
She said these plastics are “very easy to reclaim and repelletize.” No. 1 plastic, which includes water and soda bottles, can become polyester and fleece clothing. No. 2 plastic products, such as detergent bottles, are transformed into durable agricultural tools and outdoor furniture.