Recycling Know No’s: Why Quality Matters and How You Can Help
In mid-November 2025, the Town of Bedford partnered with our recycling hauler, Republic Services and a consultant firm, BCLW, to conduct a detailed audit of Bedford’s curbside recycling stream. This hands-on review helps us understand exactly what residents are placing in their blue carts, how much of it is actually recyclable, and how we can continue improving as a community.
How the Audit Works
Each week, Republic Services picks up approximately 25 tons of material from blue recycling carts at homes in Bedford. For the audit, the collection trucks from all five Monday routes brought everything collected from blue carts back to Republic’s facility in Tyngsborough. From there, BCLW collected six random samples from the contents of each truck. Each sample was:
- Weighed,
- Sorted by material type, and
- Weighed again to calculate its percentage composition.
This process tells us not only the value of the recyclable materials collected (called a blended ton), but also how much the Town must pay to process and market those materials. Every item placed into the cart affects both recycling efficiency and the Town’s budget.
Based on this audit, approximately 20% of the material collected, by weight, are items that are not acceptable for recycling (called residue or sometimes residuals). A cleaner recycling stream, with 5% or less of unacceptable materials is the goal and would result in the lowest processing costs for the Town. Read on to learn more about what Bedford is doing well and where we could improve. Remember the basics –Metal Cans; Plastic Bottles, Jars, Jugs Tubs; Glass Bottles and Jars; and Paper & Cardboard in the blue cart. When in doubt, use the Recycle Coach “What Goes Where” tool or please put it in the trash instead.
Great News: Bedford Recycles Fiber Very Well
Bedford residents excel at recycling paper and cardboard. More than half of what is collected each Monday is made up of:
- Old Corrugated Cardboard (OCC)
- Mixed Papers such as junk mail, newspapers, catalogs, and paperback books
These fiber products are highly recyclable and currently in demand, which helps keep processing costs lower and returns greater value to the Town. For those interested in commodity markets, current recycled fiber pricing can be viewed on the SMP index at recycledmaterials.net.
Nice work, Bedford—your good habits are making a real difference.
Our Biggest Challenge: Plastic Bags and Film
The most significant issue uncovered during the audit—and one common across recycling programs nationwide—is plastic bags and film. This includes:
- Loose plastic bags
- Plastic film (e.g., overwrap on cases of bottled beverages)
- Air pillows and bubble/plastic mailers from packages
- Recyclables tied inside a plastic bag
- Plastic bags filled with trash
These materials cannot be recycled in Bedford’s blue carts. Recyclables contained in a plastic bag will not be emptied and sorted at the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) and are instead thrown away as trash. Plastic bags tangle in sorting single-stream equipment, causing slowdowns, shutdowns, and dangerous working conditions for employees at the MRF. These delays also increase processing costs, which affects the Town’s overall program budget.
What to do instead:
Clean and empty plastic bags and film can be taken to grocery store collection bins (usually near the front entrance) or placed in the trash. This includes grocery checkout bags, bread bags, plastic bags from the produce aisle, air pillows, bubble/plastic mailing envelopes and case overwrap - if you can stretch the bag, it can be recycled with plastic film at the grocery store. Because the grocery store source separates plastic film material on site, recyclability is not impacted by the challenges of single-stream processing described above. If you wish to recycle your plastic bags, please do so at the grocery store and not in the recycling cart. If you cannot bring bags back to the store, put them in the trash.
Metal: Cans Yes, Scrap No
Bedford residents are doing a great job recycling steel and aluminum cans. While cans make up a smaller portion of the overall recycling stream, they are extremely valuable and infinitely recyclable.
However, scrap metal—including items like wrenches, plumbing parts, light fixtures, and hardware—should never go in the curbside cart. Scrap metal is heavy and often sharp, posing serious safety risks to staff and causing significant damage to sorting equipment.
Where to bring scrap metal:
Scrap metal should be taken directly to the Bedford Recycling Center (BRC), where it can be safely and properly recycled.
A Few Items That Belong in the Trash
The audit also revealed some common household items placed in recycling carts that may look recyclable but truly aren’t. These include:
- Swiffer pads
- Dirty diapers
- Used paper plates
- Foam-like Styrofoam alternatives, such as Renew Liner or the packaging insert from The Farmer’s Dog (even if it has a chasing arrows symbol on the package)
Even though many of these items contain paper or fibrous material, they are not recyclable due to contamination or how they are manufactured. Please place these items in the trash.
Why Quality Matters
Every item placed in the blue cart affects the Town’s recycling costs, the safety of workers, and the ability of recyclable materials to find new life as raw materials. When residents place only the right items in the cart—and keep the wrong items out—Bedford’s recycling stream becomes cleaner, safer, and more valuable.
Together, We Can Keep Improving
DPW would like to thank Bedford residents for the progress already made and for the community-wide commitment to recycling responsibly. Continuous improvement is what keeps our program strong and sustainable.
By staying informed and making small adjustments at home, each of us plays an important role in keeping Bedford’s recycling program efficient, economical, and environmentally sound.
Thank you, Bedford, for helping us recycle right. Let’s keep up the great work—together.