Trash is Cash

Laurel Peltier is a contributing writer for Earth 911. Become an Earth 911 contributor.

Don’t throw that soda can out; it’s worth a lot!

“You know it all gets burned.” The view that recycling is either costly, or it is burned or dumped is common in Maryland. In 2005, Maryland’s Department of the Environment reported that over 39 percent of Maryland’s commercial and residential trash was recycled.

The reality is recyclable items—aluminum cans, steel cans and #1 and #2 coded plastic bottles—are in high demand and earn income for Maryland’s municipalities. With a mandatory state recycling rate set at 20 percent, local waste departments now efficiently collect, separate and sell their resident’s recyclables to a vibrant Mid-Atlantic recycling sector.

So trash can be cash? In 2005, Baltimore County alone earned more than $2 million selling recyclable materials. And, since municipalities pay waste disposal fees by the ton, those fees are avoided when recyclables are sold rather than dumped.

How much money is potentially lost by chucking the soda can? Charlie Reighart, Baltimore County’s Recycling and Waste Prevention Manager explains, “While many Baltimore County residents already recycle, our team estimates $3 million of sellable recyclable material is thrown out each year. Recycling is a win-win for residents, saving taxpayer dollars while helping the environment.”

Beyond the income, recycling is positive for our environment. Producing paper, aluminum and plastic generates pollution, uses energy and reduces resources.

Take aluminum for example. Making aluminum cans from recycled cans versus from scratch uses 95 percent less energy resulting in 90 percent less costs. Going from bauxite ore in Australia’s outback to a soda can in Baltimore is a dirty, energy and chemical intensive process. So much so that recycled aluminum sells for the highest price—selling on today’s open market for about $1800 per ton.

Also, paper going to Mid-Atlantic paper mills for reprocessing back into newsprint and boxes means fewer trees logged and fewer gas-guzzling miles required to haul wood around the country.

So, next time you consider throwing out that “trash,” remember that curbside recycling is a relatively easy action for everyone to improve our planet’s health. In the end, cash is king, so recycle those soda cans, school papers and tuna cans because they’re worth money.