Word of California’s lawsuit against an oil company accusing it of deception when it comes to the benefits of recycling plastics may have some people asking if they should change their recycling approach. Angela Poe, in Lexington’s Environmental Quality and Public Works Department, said the first line of defense against waste is reduce, then reuse, and finally recycle. Poe said advances are being made in storage.
“Some of the reusable sandwich bags and things have gotten very good and much easier to use and clean than they were when they first came out. And so, that’s an easy replacement to make as well.”
When possible, Poe suggests using aluminum beverage containers over glass and plastic. She said larger carton containers for beverages are preferable when it comes to recycling. Poe said there is future processing for items placed in curbside Rosie containers.
“We only collect what we know that we can give to a vendor that’s going to process it. And we sell our material regionally,” said Poe.