Plastic Bags Go Blue

From grocery bags to bread bags to bags once containing breakfast cereal, all clean plastics can go directly in the blue bin. Even bubble and cling wrap are blue bin approved. Residents can view a complete list of acceptable bags on the County of Santa Barbara’s regional recycling website, www.lessismore.org/plasticbags.

The County is partnering with the cities of Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, Goleta, and Lompoc to promote the new program. The campaign, titled “New in the Blue”, kicks off today.

Once collected in the blue bins, local trash haulers transport the plastics to processing facilities where they are sorted, baled, and sent for remanufacturing into new products like park benches and playground equipment.

Residents serviced by Waste Management are instructed to bundle bags together by putting their bags in one single bag. This process helps Waste Management’s staff manually pick out the bags at the sorting facility.

Residents serviced by MarBorg can leave their bags loose, as the recyclables are processed at a facility that uses air blowers to separate the bags from other materials.

While recycling is a welcome option for plastic bags, residents are still encouraged to use reusable bags whenever possible. Reusable bags are a great way to reduce waste and preserve natural resources.

For more information about plastic bag recycling in Santa Barbara County, visit www.lessismore.org/plasticbags.