When Greeting Cards Can't Be Recycled (And How You Can Change That)

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Greeting cards are a great way to tell somebody you love them, but what happens when you've collected dozens of them over the years? While you can throw them away, there's no need, as greeting cards are easily recyclable. At least most of the time- there are certain circumstances that make them impossible to recycle. Thankfully, that situation can be remedied.

Greeting Cards Are Usually Made Of Paper And Cardboard

Typically, most greeting cards can be easily recycled, as they are usually made out of paper and cardboard. As a result, they can be recycled and transformed into other paper items, such as new greeting cards, book paper, or anything else.

Recycling greeting cards is necessary due to the heavy impact greeting cards have on the environment. An astonishing seven billion greeting cards are purchased ever year, and since they possess very little reuse value beyond sentimentality or nostalgia, most of them end up in in landfills.

Items In Cards That Can't Be Recycled

While the paper and cardboard of greeting cards can be easily recycled, there are some greeting card items that can't. Unfortunately, this causes many people to simply throw their cards away, creating unnecessary waste. The following common greeting card items cannot be recycled:

• Any electronic noise maker included on the card
• Foil-lined envelopes
• Batteries used in electronic items
• Metal charms
• Any foil
• Cutouts made of felt and ribbon
• Glitter stuck to the exterior of the card

Removing Those Items

Before throwing your greeting cards in a recycling bin en masse, look over all of them to find the non-recyclable items mentioned above. Separate them into individual piles sorted by the type of problematic item each contains. This helps you sort through the removed items and dispose of them in an appropriate trash container.

Use a knife or a pair of scissors to cut out electronic items, scrape off glitter, remove foil, cut off metal charms, and any ribbons attached. Don't be afraid to cut the card, as this won't affect the recycling process. Make sure to fully remove every offending item from each card and place the cards in the recycling bin.

Now, you can easily recycle your collection of greeting cards without worrying about any of them causing a problem in the recycling process. This helps you reuse these cards by turning them into other items and decrease the amount of trash you generate, decreasing your need for garbage disposal. You can discover more on proper garbage disposal online.

13 May 2016