Frequently Asked Questions

How should I sort my recycling?

You'll save a lot of time and effort if you pre-sort as much as possible BEFORE you get here.

First, separate out California Refund Value (CRV) materials into these categories to get your refund on the deposit:

Aluminum Cans
Glass beverage bottles (sort by color)
#1 PET or PETE Plastic beverage containers (remove caps, color sorting is not required)
#2 HDPE Plastic beverage containers (remove caps)
Used motor oil (be sure container doesn't leak)

Then bring your materials to the Buyback Scale for weighing.

If you don't want to collect the CRV deposit refund, simply empty your materials into the appropriate bins.

Non-CRV materials should be sorted as follows and deposited in the corresponding bins:

Bins are also provided for other recyclable materials.

What can I get money back for? — CRV-eligible beverage containers including aluminum cans, glass bottles, and PET/HDPE plastic bottles.
How do I get paid for my recycling? — Bring CRV materials to our Buyback Scale during operating hours for cash payment by weight or count.
What materials do you accept for recycling? — Glass, plastics #1-7, aluminum, steel, tin, paper, cardboard, batteries, and motor oil.
What materials don't you accept? — Hazardous waste, medical waste, electronics, and contaminated materials are not accepted.
What is Office Pack? — Office Pack refers to mixed office paper including copy paper, letterhead, envelopes, and similar paper products suitable for recycling.
Where can I recycle my phonebook? — Phone books can be recycled with mixed paper at either our Arcata or Eureka location.
What do the numbers on plastic containers mean? — The numbers (#1-7) indicate the type of plastic resin used. We accept all numbered plastic containers.
What can I recycle with Cardboard? — Corrugated cardboard, paperboard, cereal boxes, and similar packaging. Flatten boxes and remove packing materials.
Why should I bother to recycle? — Recycling conserves resources, reduces landfill waste, saves energy, creates local jobs, and helps protect our environment.
What is CRV? — California Refund Value is a deposit paid on beverage containers that is refunded when containers are returned for recycling.