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Frequently Asked Questions

Plastic

What type of plastic containers can be recycled at the Stanford Recycling Center?
Is the cap of a recyclable plastic bottle also recyclable?
What steps should I take to recycle my plastic bottles?
What happens to plastic bottles once I place it in the recycle bin?
Can I recycle plastic bags, bubble wrap, air pillows, and dry cleaning bags?
Can I recycle old photographs and negatives?
Can I recycle Styrofoam?
Can lab plastics be recycled?
Can pipette trays be recycled?
What are aseptic containers and can they be recycled?
Why does one community recycle one type of plastic while another community doesn't?
How many water bottles are recycled and why should we recycle them?
What does the number on the bottom of the container mean?
What are the seven types of plastic?
What is PETE Plastic?
What are some of things that #1 PETE Plastic can be made into?
What types of products are packaged in PETE containers?
PETE bottles can be recycled back into food and beverage containers. True or False?
What is the difference between blow molded and injection molded plastic and why does it matter?

Metal

Glass

Can glass be recycled?
Can all glass be recycled?
Can lab glass be recycled?
What do I do with burned out lightbulbs?
What do I do with broken drinking glasses?
Can I recycle the glass from my broken window?

Paper

What kind of paper should go in the mixed paper bin?
I often see people taking magazines out of the recycling bins at the Stanford Recycling Drop-Off Center. Is this okay?
What should be done with semi-glossy advertisement inserts in the newspaper?
How do I recycle cardboard?
What should I do with cereal boxes and gift boxes?
Can catalogs be recycled?
We just received our new phone books. What should we do with the old ones?
Can books be recycled? I tried to sell my books back, but they didn't take them all.
Can I recycle old photographs and negatives?
What are aseptic containers and can they be recycled?
Why can’t pizza boxes be recycled?
What should I do with slightly used paper towels, paper plates, paper napkins, or paper cups?
Can I recycle my bows, ribbons, wrapping paper, and boxes?
What can I do with old greeting cards? 
I am concerned about identity theft. Where can I take personal papers to be destroyed?
How do I reduce my junk mail?
What are the key benefits to recycling paper?

 

Composting

Landfill Trash

Contamination

What items are considered contaminants in recycling?
Why can’t pizza boxes be recycled?
What should I do with slightly used paper towels, paper plates, paper napkins, or paper cups?
Should I recycle materials contaminated with food? For example, should I recycle cardboard pizza boxes with food attached to the cardboard? Or should I recycle plastic frozen dinner trays with a small amount of food?
I am confused about paper food containers. What is recyclable?
Can I recycle old photographs and negatives?

Collections on Campus

Special Events Recycling, Composting and Trash

Electronic Waste

What is e-waste?
What do we do with e-waste?
What is the Electronic Waste Recycling Act?
What is the 2006 Universal Waste Law?
Are cathode ray tubes are hazardous waste?
What is banned from the landfill?
How do I recycle and dispose of electronic scrap?
What are the procedures for University Departments to recycle electronic scrap and equipment?
What are the procedures for Campus Residents and community to recycle electronic scrap and equipment?
Computer manufacturer's exchanges, takebacks, and recycling?
Where can I find additional information?

Household Hazardous Waste

Where can I take my Household Hazardous Waste?
Where can I go to find some used paint or other products that are consider household hazardous waste?
What is the new Universal Waste law (2006) and how does it effect me?
What is Universal Waste?
How do I know if a particular electronic device can be thrown in the trash?
Why have these items been banned from the landfill?
If I can’t throw this stuff in the trash how do I get rid of it?
Why can’t we recycle our household batteries at the Stanford Recycling Center?
Where can I recycle my used motor oil?
Where can I recycle my laptop battery?
How do I dispose of used injection needles?
How do I dispose of a refrigerator?
 

Holiday Waste Prevention

How much extra waste is created during the winter holiday season?
How can I reduce waste during the winter holiday season?
How can I reduce waste and buy great gifts this holiday season?
How can I protect the planet this holiday season?
What are some Green Resolution that I can consider this year?

Reuse Options

Benefits of Recycling

Why is it important to recycle?
What is recycling's greatest economic benefit?
What are the environmental benefits of recycling?
Can recycling save energy?
How much energy is saved by recycling?
How much energy is in a can?
What is the connection between source reduction and reduction in green house gas emissions?

More on Recycling

How does recycling work?
What do the three chasing arrows mean?
Why do we have to sort our recyclables?
What happens to all the recyclables dropped off at the Stanford Recycling Center?
Why are some things recyclable and others are not?
Why can't I recycle everything?
I want to recycle items not accepted at the Stanford Recycling Center. How do I find out where to go?
Where can I find the definition of terms on consumer labels, like "recyclable" or "natural"?
What do the terms "recycled", "recyclable", "post-consumer" and "pre-consumer" mean?
What is Product Stewardship?
How much volume of our trash is packaging?
How many pounds of trash does the average American produce each year?
How has California's Bottle Bill helped bottle and can recycling?
Ever ask a beverage container why you should recycle?
What is the Shop Smart Campaign?
How can I reduce paper waste by changing my margins?
What are some waste minimization practices that I could use in my office/building/business/home?
How can I find how to reduce waste from school lunches?
Where can I find websites that talk about recycling and are geared toward children?
What is construction and demolition waste and how do we reduce or recycle it?

Buy Recycled

Stanford's Program