What can you do with leftover bubble wrap? You shouldn’t put it in your curbside recycling, because it is considered a “tangler.” Meaning it will end up wrapped around the spinning discs that sort your recyclables and cause major headaches for the MRF (Materials Recovery Facility). But there are a few options for you if you want to recycle Bubble Wrap.
Recycling Bubble Wrap
Bubble wrap is considered “plastic film.” Plastic film cannot be recycled with other plastics, but it can be taken to special drop-off locations for plastic film recycling.
Plastic Bag Recycling Bins:
There are plastic bag drop-off bins at many stores like Giant Eagle, Target and Lowe’s. If you are in the United States, you can find a drop-off bin near you by using this search tool on Plastic Film Recycling. The types of plastic you can recycle in these bins includes:
- Bubble wrap
- Plastic grocery bags
- Bread bags
- Dry cleaning bags
- Zip-top bags
- Wraps around packs of water bottles, toilet paper, etc.
- Click here for more info on types of plastic you should and should not include in plastic bag bins.
Offer Your Bubble Wrap for Reuse:
If you generate a lot of leftover bubble wrap, you may want to offer it to a local business that does a lot of shipping. They may be happy to have the free packing materials. Or offer it up on your local Freecycle group.
Does Plastic Wrap Really Get Recycled?
This is a good question. The makers of plastic wrap certainly want you to believe that it is. They know that consumers want to be more sustainable, but they also don’t want you to stop using plastic, because that is how they make their money. So for all we know, these recycling bins might simply be a way to make consumers feel better about all the plastic film they are using. Without following the plastic wrap in that bin to see where it goes, it’s pretty tough to know whether it’s actually getting recycled, or simply landfilled.
I am going to keep taking my plastic film to the recycling drop-off, but also work to eliminate as much plastic wrap from my life as I can.
Visit our Recycling page for lots more recycling info and tips.
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