If you put your garbage and recycling out on the curb, only to never think about it again, you are not alone. It is incredibly easy to fall into the “out of sight/out of mind” mentality, especially when it comes to the waste we create.
Last year, inspired by my kids’ questions about where it all goes, I signed us up to take a guided tour of the Boulder County Recycling Center. Bonus: my friend Chandra works there, and was our guide!
Once inside the facility, I think the tipping floor is what shocked me the most.
It’s one thing to think about where it goes, or to see photos like this online. It’s another to see for yourself. In my head I was like, This isn’t even garbage - this is supposedly the “better” waste! 😳Seeing it up close made me want to be even more thoughtful about our family’s footprint.
Refilling helps prevent packaging from becoming waste at all, but this doesn’t mean that we can ignore recycling. Sustainability requires a multifaceted approach, with all the other R’s (reduce, repair, reuse, refuse, rot…) playing important roles in the solution, too.
Today, with help from my friend Chandra Valenza, we’re taking a deeper dive into our local recycling system.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your role/how you got involved with the recycling center.
I am the Community Outreach Manager for the Boulder County Resource Conservation Division. I’ve been with the County since May of 2022. Before that I was a teacher at a charter school. I taught Kindergarten and then K-12 environmental education. There came a time while teaching where I wanted to do something a little different and this job was posted at the perfect time for me. My masters degree is in environmental education and I wrote my thesis on waste education for elementary students. This job is the perfect fit.
My role is to conduct tours of the recycling center, manage our social media accounts, answer questions from the public via emails and phone calls, and attend/facilitate outreach events.
What are the official Erie Recycling guidelines?
The Town of Erie’s recycling website is a great resource for guidelines and other recycling information. You’ll find the official guidelines for all materials that come to the Boulder County Recycling Center on that website.
*Note: Erie’s recycling is transferred exclusively to Boulder County Recycling Center, regardless of whether you live in Boulder or Weld County.
Okay, so we put our recycling on the curb, the trucks come pick it up - what happens next?
Trucks unload the recyclables they have picked up onto the tipping floor. Machines and people sort out different types of materials like cans, cardboard, paper, plastic bottles, and glass. Sorted materials are baled and those bales are shipped to companies that make new products. Anything that comes in that is not recyclable will go to the landfill.
What are some myths about recycling that you’d like to bust?
A myth I’d like to bust is that all recyclables just end up in the landfill. That seems to be a headline that many people have read and it’s just not true in Boulder County.
When materials come to the recycling center that can be sold to companies to make new products, the recycling center makes money. Materials that cannot be sold are a cost to the recycling center because we have to bring them to the landfill and landfills are not free. Our facility is dedicated to keeping recyclable materials in circulation so we don’t have to depend on virgin resources.
Having EcoCycle as the operator is very beneficial as they are a mission-based non-profit that works hard to make sure everything that is on our guidelines is sold to an end market and kept in circulation.
What are some of the most common items people try to recycle that aren’t actually recyclable?
People put A LOT of plastic film in the recycling. Often it will have a recycling symbol on it so people think it can go in the bin but it gets tangled up in our machines very easily and we have to pay for it to go to the landfill. You can take plastic film to the CHaRM and they’ll be able to sell it to end markets but it doesn’t work in our facility.
Compostable products are also a problem. Compostable is not the same thing as recyclable. Plant-based plastics or compostable paper items are not items that we can sell to end markets as they can’t make new items out of them.
What are some items that are recyclable that people rarely do?
Aluminum Foil! That said, we consider aluminum foil a container so it needs to follow the recycling rules for containers: 3D and at least 2”. You can start as small as a peanut butter cup aluminum wrapper and keep adding to it like you would a rubber band ball until it is at least 2” and then put it in your recycling bin.
Also, keep plastic caps on plastic bottles! They are both plastic so you can replace the cap and put the whole bottle in the bin. On the flip side of that, remove metal and plastic lids from glass containers since they are different materials. You can recycle the lid as long as it is at least 2” in one direction.
The real-real everyone wants to know: for those of us living in this area, how much actually gets recycled in Boulder's facility?
The Boulder County Recycling Center is able to sort and send to recycling end markets 88% of the material that comes to our facility. The 12% that goes to the landfill are items that aren’t on our guidelines – those things that people think or wish are recyclable but actually aren’t.
Where does it go?
We are proud to say that all of the end markets for our recyclable materials are in North America. The end markets are a variety of companies including paper mills that make new products from our materials.
How do you recycle in your home? Is there anything that working at the recycling center made you re-think? Tips/tricks?
I like to think we’re pretty good recyclers in my home. I definitely had to work on getting my husband not to crush cans or cartons (we want those to stay 3D!) We are pretty cognizant of looking at items before they go in the bin and taking things apart if they are made of multiple materials. If I have any hesitation about an item and can’t find it on the A-Z guide (which is also an app!), I will just put it in the trash.
Do you refill anything in your home?
I refill our soaps! I like to buy the big bottles of hand soap and dish soap, then refill our reusable dispensers. The next step is to buy the soaps at Bridge Refill!
You also do compost workshops! Can you tell us about those?
Unfortunately, we are not currently doing compost workshops. We gave our attention to Rain Barrel workshops in the Spring and will do so again in 2026.
You can still find our compost workshop packet and a YouTube video of the workshop on our website. I’ve been doing backyard composting for a few years now so I’m happy to answer any questions people may have.
Where do you see the biggest opportunities for growth or improvement in our community’s recycling engagement? What can we do better, and what are your hopes for a sustainable future?
Great question! The biggest opportunity for growth is for folks to know which facility their recycling is going to and what items can actually be recycled aka know your recycling guidelines! We’ve got to stop “wish-cycling,” hoping that whatever we put into the bin, someone will figure out what to do with it. It doesn’t work that way. We have to have machines or people-power to sort the item, and the item has to have a place to go afterwards.
Consumption is a problem. Yes, we have a great recycling facility and an operator that works hard to make sure things are actually recycled, but the material coming to the facility never slows down. Think about which items you can buy in bulk (and/or refill!) and which items you can do without.
And don't forget to bring your reusable cups and water bottles everywhere!! There’s no need to get a single-use coffee cup or water bottle.
You mentioned there have been some legislative changes regarding recycling in Colorado, too. What’s coming for 2026?
In 2022, Colorado passed House Bill 22-1355, also known as the Producer Responsibility Program for Statewide Recycling Act. This legislation shifts the responsibility for funding recycling from taxpayers to the producers of packaging and paper products. Hooray!
Starting January 1, 2026, producers must begin paying annual dues to the Producer Responsibility Organization, Circular Action Alliance, based on the amount and type of packaging and paper they introduce into the Colorado market. These funds will be used to provide free and convenient recycling services to residents across the state.
Colorado residents can expect several meaningful changes and benefits from this program. The new law ensures that everyone has access to free, convenient recycling services, whether through curbside pickup or local drop-off sites. It also brings investments in better recycling infrastructure and clearer public education, making it easier to know what can be recycled. Recycling guidelines will be consistent throughout the state. The program supports environmental goals by reducing landfill waste while also boosting local economies through job creation in recycling and manufacturing.
How can folks learn more?
Come on a tour! We offer guided and self-guided tours. I’m your tour guide for the guided ones, but we have a ton of educational displays and windows into the facility, so you can easily do a self-guided tour. I’ve found that tours have the most significant impact on behavior change because you can see what happens to your recyclables once they leave the curb.
Don’t forget about all the wonderful other opportunities for diversion we have in our area. Explore the Recycle Row businesses to reduce your landfill waste even more.
Colorado Recycles Week is the Week of November 10. We’re hosting an “Open House” on Thursday, November 13 from 9am-1pm. There will be organizations and businesses tabling (like Bridge Refill!), staff onsite to answer questions, and a City of Longmont truck will be there from 9:30-10:30am so people can see a recycling truck up close. The first 50 people will receive a special reusable water bottle! We’d love to see you there!
Thank you so much Chandra!
And thank you, readers, for taking the time to learn more. Hope to see you at the Colorado Recycles Week Open House on the 13th. And in the meantime, I’ll leave you with this local recycling sorting game (great for kids, too) ♻️💚