What Are Thin Plastics?

You may hear us say: "DO NOT recycle thin plastics"... but what is a "thin plastic"? Thin plastics are flexible plastics often used in food packaging. No thin plastics are recyclable, and they should not be placed in recycling bins or used to bag recyclables. Here are some examples of nonrecyclable thin plastics:
- Grocery or trash bags
- Bubble wrap
- Bread, bagel, or cereal bags
- Shrink rap, Cellophane, or other wraps used around boxes
- Thin plastic covers over microwave meals
- Plastic chip or snack bags
- Hardware or shipping plastics
 
Instead, please utilize company run takeback programs for thin plastics. These include TerraCycle programs and in store drop offs. Chelsea District Library also offers thin plastic drop off.