Don't trash your to-go coffee cup
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I'm going to need coffee shops to start having recycling bins. Photo: Travis Meier/Axios
Paper and plastic to-go cups are now recyclable across the Kansas City region.
Why it matters: Your daily caffeine routine just got a little more eco-friendly.
The big picture: It's a new campaign by the Mid-America Regional Council's Solid Waste Management District. Facilities can now sort the cups and sell them to be recycled into things like paper products, new containers and even clothing.
How it works: Items only truly get recycled if a company wants to buy them and turn them into something else worth selling — like Owens Corning turning recycled KC glass into insulation.
- Recently installed optical sorting equipment separates plastic cups, and paper cups are now accepted at the mill as mixed paper, even though they have a plastic lining, GFL Environmental manager Tom Coffman tells Axios.
- Lids and straws still aren't recyclable and must be thrown in the trash, and liquids should be dumped.
Between the lines: Just because plastic has a symbol and a number on it doesn't mean there's a company ready to buy it, Solid Waste outreach coordinator Matt Riggs tells Axios.
- For example, clamshell berry containers don't have an aftermarket — they get thrown out at facilities and create sorting inefficiencies.
- He says locals should go by type of container instead of by number.
- The only other types of recyclable to-go ware are paper cup holders from fast food restaurants and pizza boxes.
Fun fact: I always thought a grease stain voided a pizza box from the recycling bin, but Riggs says "it's a matter of degree of greasiness."
- A small stain can still be recycled. A soaking mess has to be thrown out — but you can still tear off the top and recycle that.
💭 Travis' thought bubble: Unfortunately, Domino's garlic butter crust will always render the box's bottom unsalvageable.
The bottom line: Chuck the lid, recycle the cup.