RECYCLING FAQ

RECYCLING FAQ

GENERAL QUESTIONS

1. What if I throw something into my recycling tote that is not recyclable?

If something ends up in your recycling tote that shouldn’t be there, the load is “contaminated”. Currently, in the City of Moscow, about 3% of everything put into recycling totes is not recyclable, and is sent to the landfill as trash. Contamination increases labor costs at the Material Recovery Facility (MRF) because workers have to remove the trash from the recycling and send it to a landfill. 

If you have only a couple of non-recyclable items in your recycling tote, your recycling will be serviced, and you will get a yellow warning tag. This lets you know that something in your cart was wrong, and to please be more careful next time. If your recycling tote has too many non-recyclables, you will get a red tag. Receiving a red tag means that your recycling will not be serviced until you do one of two things. One option is to take all the contaminated material out, and you will be serviced on your next collection date. Another option is to have a house call. A house call is where someone from Moscow Recycling comes to your house and audits your recycling with you. Upon their visit, anything that is not recyclable will be put into your trash; they will take the good material back to Moscow Recycling with them. 

If you are unsure if the item is recyclable, visit our What Goes In, What Stays Out page or call us at (208)882-5724.

2. Can glass go into my curbside recycling tote?

No. However, we offer glass collection for Latah County Residents at Moscow Recycling’s 24/7 Drop Off (401 N. Jackson Street). 

3. Are plastic grocery bags recyclable? 

No. Plastic grocery bags and films clog the sorting lines at material recovery facilities. Customers are urged to either take bags back to the grocery store to be recycled or use durable reusable bags.