Dispose of Your Hard-to-Recycle Items Via The ReCollective

This Earth Month, invest in your community—and the environment. 

When it comes to recycling, there’s no question about whether items like paper, cardboard, plastic and the like are recyclable. But when it comes to things like plastic film, Styrofoam, paint, batteries and light bulbs, confusion abounds over how you should dispose of them. Enter The ReCollective, the Triangle’s first hard-to-recycle pickup service.

Launched in fall 2022 by Bryce Brooks and Kevin Younge, two eco-friendly Triangle residents with a passion of simplifying waste and reducing climate change, The ReCollective makes recycling easy, accessible and transparent while taking waste off your hands and creating something new out of it. 

Filling the gaps left by traditional curbside programs, the concept has since expanded to serve 600 households/month across the Triangle—diverting the equivalent of 1 million plastic bags’ worth of plastic film from landfills and waterways (!). To boot, in 2023, The ReCollective expanded to offer organics collection—including food scraps and compostable waste—and introduced a partnership with Toward Zero Waste that makes composting more accessible and affordable. 

“We are passionate about helping bring awareness to the community about the environmental challenges we face,” says Younge. Adds Brooks, “The Triangle is a special area that is so ready for circular community solutions that are affordable, accessible and have a positive impact for everyone here.”

The ReCollective’s pickup service is super-convenient—and you don’t even have to leave your house to use it. Collection bag kits containing four labeled canvas bags, a separate plastic bag for Styrofoam, and a waterproof bag are dropped off at your home before your scheduled pickup day. Simply leave the bags on your porch and a ReCollective crew member will swing by to collect them. 

The sustainable service then takes materials and passes them on to local businesses and organizations that recycle or reuse them in a creative way—think art pieces or products like deck boards. Reduce, reuse, recycle in action!

The best part? Getting rid of those nonrecyclables costs about the same price as a Netflix subscription or getting a couple drinks at a local bar. So why not put your money toward something that’ll help better the environment—and the world?

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