Stop putting all of your grocery bags under the sink or in the curbside bin. Here’s what the city wants you to do with them

A recent survey done by the American Chemistry Council’s Flexible Film Recycling Group brought to light the fact that most of Mecklenburg County still isn’t sure where or what they should be recycling.

[Related: I was recycling WRONG and I bet you are as well]

According to the results, just half of those surveyed knew that certain plastic items, like plastic bags and wraps, are supposed to be taken to grocery and retail stores like Harris Teeter instead of put in curbside bins.

“When plastic bags or wraps are put in curbside bins, it makes recycling more difficult, time consuming, and expensive, which winds up costing all of us more money,” Chairman Trevor Fuller, one of the officials heading the movement, said in a press release. 

Recycling these items at retailers avoids them going to the landfill and makes it possible to create useful, new products like new grocery bags and benches as a part of the city’s new Recycle the Wrap program.

Fuller, along with other officials, is asking citizens to get involved and think before throwing out things like grocery bags in order to support the City’s Environmental Focus Area goals that include making Charlotte a model in environmental sustainability. The movement is made up of organizations like the American Chemistry Council’s Flexible Film Recycling Group and GreenBlue/the Sustainable Packaging Coalition.

Look for bins like these and see a full list of participating locations here.

Here’s what retailers will accept:

Grocery bags
Newspaper bags
Produce bags
Bread bags
Dry cleaning bags
Zipper bags
Bubble wrap
Shipping pillows

They’ll also accept plastic wrap from:

• Water bottle cases
• Diapers
• Toilet paper
• Paper towels

Items must be clean, dry and placed in the appropriate bins.

You can learn more about the program, as well as exactly where and what to recycle here.