In episode 31 of the Outdoor Minimalist Podcast, we are tackling the topic of recycling. This isn’t necessarily niched to the outdoor industry, but it is a topic that I get a lot of questions about so it felt fitting to discuss how recycling works in many areas and how you can learn more about what is and isn’t recyclable where you live.
We did chat a bit about things like fuel canisters and other common outdoor industry consumables that many people throw away, but you can recycle. So, stay tuned for those tips near the end of the episode!
Joining me today, I had the pleasure of hosting Courtney Lane. Courtney is an outdoor professional who has been in the industry for about six years now, with a primary focus on outdoor and environmental education. She takes pride in trying to be the best steward of the environment that she can by trying to understand her own overall consumption and also by educating future generations by sparking curiosity and connection for the outdoors. In her spare time, she is an amateur lifestyle blogger and photographer.
Courtney Lane
Episode Resources
Types of Plastics and Their Recycling Codes: https://dpw.lacounty.gov/epd/SBR/pdfs/TypesOfPlastic.pdf
How To Recycle Metal Fuel Canisters: https://www.msrgear.com/blog/recycling-isopro-canisters/
How To Refill Camping Fuel Canisters: https://www.instructables.com/Refilling-Single-Use-IsoButane-Propane-Fuel-Canist/
Patagonia Worn Wear: https://wornwear.patagonia.com/
North Face Renewed: https://www.thenorthfacerenewed.com/thenorthface-us/welcome
Metamorphic Gear: https://www.metamorphicgear.com/
Green Guru: https://www.greengurugear.com/
CragDog: http://cragdog.org/
This transcript was edited to remove some filler words and phrases and is not verbatim according to what is spoken in the audio recording.
Meg: I’m looking forward to delving into all things recycling with you, but before we get to that, can you tell me a little bit more about how you got involved in outdoor recreation and how that fits into your life now?
Courtney: Yeah, thank you so much for having me! I’m really excited to be here. I’ve been in the outdoor industry for about six years now, professionally working in a variety of camps as a naturalist and primarily focusing on outdoor and environmental education. The opportunity kind of fell into my lap when I was in college. I joined a program called Outdoor Leadership, and it just kind of went from there.
Throughout that program, I started understanding what it means to be a good steward of the environment—what it looks like to take care of the environment, to be a little bit more aware of your consumption and your waste. Through that, I started my own journey of wanting to understand what the process really looks like. Are things really being recycled? Am I doing what I can to be the best steward possible?
Meg: Awesome. Yeah, it is a very confusing system, so it’s always interesting to hear about other people’s experiences with recycling. But before that, what types of outdoor activities do you enjoy now?
Courtney: So, primarily now, I’m really into biking and hiking. Honestly, any chance I can get to be outside, I’ll go outside. I’m currently learning how to surf, which is really exciting—I haven’t done anything like that before.
Meg: Awesome. Yeah, surfing is a scary one for me, but it always seemed really amazing. I should probably try it someday as well.
You were saying the topic of recycling is a big one, and we aren’t strictly going to talk about just outdoor gear and equipment recycling in this episode because that’s kind of a topic in itself. Maybe let’s just start by overviewing how recycling in general functions in the United States specifically. And if you know about other countries and can compare the United States to them, then you can do that as well.
Courtney: Absolutely. And before I get started, I just want to say that I recognize that some people spend their whole lives researching this topic and understanding it. I’m by no means a professional—just someone who’s tried to take my own waste and understanding into consideration to better grasp the process.
So, the United States, as a developed country, has a pretty decent recycling system. It is by no means perfect, and I think it’s being challenged in a lot of ways right now, which is really great. But basically, the way that I understand it works is counties make those decisions themselves. So, it can vary from state to state and county to county. They pay for residential and commercial recyclables to be trucked to local and regional recycling plants for processing.
Those could be places for mixed metals, glass, plastics, or whatever that looks like. The clean batches are then sorted or compressed into bales of similar materials or plastics, and those centers sell the recyclables to open markets that will buy them to process into new materials—things like plastic pellets or post-consumer paper.
Oftentimes, the places buying these materials are overseas, like China. Unfortunately, the United States has a very high recycling rate and is now creating too many recyclables for it to remain a profitable margin. So, we have this overflow of materials that are just kind of sitting there, being thrown away, or not being properly handled. That could be because there are too many of them, they’re contaminated, or they’re too hard to process—whatever that looks like.
Meg: Yeah, and like you mentioned, because the different municipalities and counties are making those decisions, it’s really hard to give blanket statements across the United States, like, "This is how to recycle," because it’s so different in every single place.
For example, where I live, we can’t recycle glass, but we can recycle a lot of other things. That in itself is very taxing for me to think about sometimes, and I have a lot of opinions about recycling in general.
So, I’m wondering, from your perspective, do you think recycling is actually good for the environment? And I’m going to kind of combine two questions here—do you think it’s good for the environment, and do you think it’s the best waste management option that we have?
Courtney: Yeah, those are both really good questions. I think I’ll start with the second one first and talk a little bit about whether it’s the best waste management option.
For me personally, I don’t think that it is. Thinking back to that very classic “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle,” everyone knows it and recognizes the emblem. But, as you mentioned in one of your prior episodes, people tend to completely forget the first two steps. They think, "I’m recycling; I’m doing a good job." And while being mindful and trying to recycle is really important, it’s not the best waste management option.
There are so many ways to handle the things we’re recycling. Oftentimes, things can be reused or donated. For example, I recently lived in a home with a wood stove, and we used cardboard, paper, and things like that to start the fire—only things that were safe to burn, of course. But it was a way to repurpose those items. Or you might have pasta jars that someone in your neighborhood could use.
Starting with how you can reuse items is a big step, and then thinking about how you can reduce. That’s also a really challenging topic because accessibility plays such a huge role—what people can access, what’s offered in their local stores, and what’s not.
When it comes to the question of whether recycling is truly good for the environment, I think it’s such a tricky question. To me, it feels like putting a Band-Aid on a much bigger issue. While the idea of recycling sounds great in theory, the reality is so much more complex. Such a small percentage of the things you put in your curbside bin are actually recycled or turned into post-consumer products.
So, ultimately, I don’t think it’s the best for the environment. Is it better than just throwing your things directly in the trash? Yes, I do believe that. But I wouldn’t call it our first line of defense.
Meg: I 100% agree. I could say so many things about recycling, but I’m just not going to do that right now.
Part of what I think you already touched on, especially in one of your last statements, is that not everything you put in the recycling bin actually gets recycled. And sometimes, you’re even putting the wrong things in there.
For instance, when I first moved to where I live now, I was putting glass in the recycling because I didn’t know we didn’t recycle glass here. It completely blew my mind that people didn’t do that! So, I was putting something in there that I shouldn’t have been—a classic case of "wish-cycling."
What do you think makes recycling so hard or confusing for so many people?
Courtney: Yeah, I think it goes back to that original idea of understanding that classic recycling campaign. People see that little arrow or the little triangle and they're like, "Yes, I can do this, I can recycle!"
Just like with the glass—I used to live in a space where you couldn't recycle glass. They actually changed that policy while I was living there, so I was like, "Yay, recycling!" And then, like six months later, my roommate was like, "You can't recycle that." I was like, "That is great to know."
So I think it’s just a lack of access to proper recycling protocols and procedures in people’s areas. It’s really easy to just go to your local recycling center or have your bin at your house and think, "This has this little triangle on it, I can throw it in the recycling," without really understanding what that numerical system looks like or what your county can actually offer. A lot of counties just stopped recycling glass because it uses so much energy. They didn’t make any announcement about it, so people didn’t know.
I think it’s really confusing for people because they think, "I’m doing the right thing! This has the symbol on it, so I’ll just put it in there," and then it ends up contaminating everything and it all just gets thrown away—or whatever happens after that.
Meg: Yeah, and I think oftentimes, a lot of it falls down to the individual consumer. A lot of it is pushed on us, like, "Well, you should understand this and seek out this information," but it’s not always top of mind or super accessible.
So how can people best access their local municipalities’ recycling regulations and instructions?
Courtney: That’s a great question. I think that also circles back into the concept of accessibility—what people have at their disposal. If you have the option to get on a computer or have a smartphone, you can Google those things.
Even then, it’s a little tricky to navigate county websites. You might find a list, but it could be outdated, or you have to follow links that may or may not work. If you’re willing to go down that rabbit hole, it can be helpful.
One thing I’ve found is if you know where your local recycling centers are—sometimes they’re near the landfill or other places—it’s worth checking. Those places typically have information posted, so you could take a picture of it.
Or you could try calling your county and saying, "I’m trying to do the right thing. Can you send me information on what you accept?" That seems to be one of the best ways to get the right information.
Meg: Yeah, it does take a little extra research here and there. I’ve seen in some cities where they’ll send out a flyer or the waste management company will mail something to your mailbox, and I wish that was more of a standard practice.
They should just provide that information up front. In all reality, that would probably make the entire system run a little more smoothly because it would likely reduce contamination, like you’re talking about.
And speaking of contamination, what are some things that people, across the board, probably put in their recycling bins that they shouldn’t? I’ve already mentioned it, but this is a common term in environmental spaces: "wish-cycling" materials.
What are some common wish-cycled materials?
Courtney: First and foremost, I’d say things that don’t belong in your recycling bin are dirty, contaminated food containers. The first thing that comes to mind is that greasy pizza box that people think, "Yes, it’s cardboard! I’ll put it in the recycling."
Unfortunately, that grease makes it impossible to go through the recycling process properly and could contaminate other things. It might just end up being thrown away or burned or whatever happens after that.
It’s really important to take the time to rinse out things like yogurt cups, milk containers, and other food-related items. Once your bin is contaminated, that continues to affect everything around it and can cause it all to be excluded from the recycling process.
Also, thinking about items you could potentially reuse before recycling them is a good approach. Glass jars, for example, could be reused instead of recycled.
Batteries are another tricky one. I hear mixed things about this, but lithium-ion or rechargeable batteries can be hazardous, and a lot of counties are really finicky about what they’ll accept. It’s best to research what your city or county offers for battery recycling. Some stores or facilities will take your old batteries and handle the recycling process.
But, the biggest thing to avoid is definitely those dirty, contaminated items.
Meg: Yeah, the battery one is really difficult for me. I just kind of collect the batteries for a really long period of time and have this little box of them until finally I'm like, "Okay, I should actually find a place to recycle these."
Actually, when I lived in Salt Lake City for a while, the climbing gym I went to had a lot of recycling options for members, which was really interesting. People could bring their batteries, and the gym would recycle them for them. I think sometimes, in our communities, there are a lot of people and city projects that can help people find the right resources. So, it does just come down to research sometimes.
But I do also, when it comes to contamination, want to talk a little bit about plastic bags. In some areas, we don’t use plastic bags anymore. I think it’s maybe more prevalent in other countries, but places like California or Washington now make you pay for bags, so people are just used to using less. But I still see a lot of people attempting to recycle plastic bags in their curbside bins.
Courtney: Yes, that's a huge thing. It goes back to the concept and ideology and not understanding what that soft plastic recycling process looks like. From what I have gathered, and it’s been a while since I've used plastic bags personally or lived in a state that allows me to use them, but from what I’ve seen, a lot of big chain grocery stores, whatever those are in your area, typically have some kind of bin where you can bring your bags and they'll recycle them for you.
So, again, going back to what you're saying—there are places and counties and cities that are trying to put in that legwork. Sometimes they’re big corporations, but even small spaces like climbing gyms or gear stores can help. So, as you navigate around your city next time, look out for places where you can drop off your batteries or plastic bags.
Meg: I feel like a lot of people misunderstand plastic bags. I think plastics, in general, are really difficult to understand because there are so many different types. Like, last summer, I was visiting a friend, and I was going to recycle a black plastic takeout container. She said, "Oh, black plastics... I don’t know, number five or something. I don’t remember which number, but we don’t recycle those in our county." And I was like, "How are you supposed to know that when that symbol is on everything?"
So, I’m kind of wondering—what tips do you have for understanding those recycling numbers? I know we’ve talked about doing the research and things, but just a general understanding of what the little triangle with the number inside actually means when it's on something.
Courtney: So, typically your county will just kind of say, "Yeah, we accept ones and fives," or whatever that looks like. And you’re like, "What does that mean?" Well, in 1988, the Society of the Plastic Industry (SPI) put together a system that allowed recyclers to tell the difference between plastics when recycling.
So, that’s what the triangle and number mean. It just represents the grid of plastic, or the resin ID. The two biggest types that can usually be recycled across the board—at least in most places I've experienced—are number one, which is polyethylene terephthalate (PET).
This is used for things like soda bottles, water bottles, and some food packaging. The number twos, which are high-density polyethylene (HDPE), are used for things like milk containers, bleach bottles, and hair care products.
All those numbers kind of tell you what kind of plastic they are. If I remember correctly, number five is often used for fiber-based things that are also usually recyclable in other places. But the biggest one to look out for is number seven, which includes a mix of plastics and is typically not recyclable in most places.
Those numbers are just broken down by what kind of plastic they are, what the grade is, and it helps determine whether they can be recycled easily or not.
Meg: Yeah, and I think if you’re taking the time to go and look to see which numbers your municipality accepts, you can just kind of remember that and then reference the little triangle.
Then, it actually becomes useful in those situations, instead of just trying to guess. Because when you see the triangle with the number one or something, you’re like, "Okay, 100%. I know this can be recycled."
One material that I always question is—I forget what they're actually called—but they’re those kind of cardboardy or waxy-type boxes you see a lot of times with different types of plant milk, juices, or soups and stocks. What are those little boxes called?
Courtney: Oh, I know what you’re talking about! I do not remember what they're called, but from what I understand, those are one of the harder things to recycle.
Meg: Yeah, same. I’ve never lived in a place that actually accepted them. I’ve also lived in some areas where they just have absolutely no recycling in place. In those situations, I think most people just opt to throw everything in the trash because it’s the easiest option.
But what are some other things that people can maybe be doing if their area doesn’t recycle at all?
Courtney: Yeah, and I am going to be honest, I don't blame people for taking that easy route. I can't do this; I'm a busy human, and I need to throw this in the trash. Living in a space like that, or even a space that offers recycling but it may be difficult to get to, or it may just have really crazy intense rules and regulations, so you're like, "I don't even know how to keep up with this."
I think the biggest thing is starting at the consumption level—being mindful of your consumption and what you're buying and how often you're buying it. And if you live in a space where you can buy things in bulk or buy things unpackaged and bring your jars in, or whatever that process looks like, it kind of starts there.
Then it goes back into something I talked a little bit about earlier: understanding how those objects and items can be reused. If that's donating them to other people or donating them to organizations that could use them, something that comes to mind for like cardboard boxes or newspapers—animal shelters could use those.
I know a lot of counties and cities typically have Facebook pages that are like "free" and people are like, "Oh yeah, I want those pasta jars," or "I can use those yogurt containers for cups."
There is a program based out of Oregon that the name is completely slipping my mind, but a camp that I worked for actually obtained a lot of our art supplies from there. So this program works to reduce waste by people just donating things like jar lids, plastic containers, old corks, or whatever that looks like.
Donating those things that may seem like trash to you—and that's totally understandable—but people can use them for art projects or have them at camps to use, whatever they’re going to use them for. So, looking into options like that, if that's something you're able to do, is probably the biggest way to reduce that waste.
Meg: Yeah, I do think reverting back to reduction and reusing are the best options when you cannot find a recycling center. But when I think back to the area I was living in, they didn't have curbside pickup for recycling, but one of the large grocery stores had those big drop-off bins.
I don't know where it ended up going, maybe another county or something. So we were able to collect our recycling, but then we had to deliver it ourselves. So it is kind of an extra step, and I think a lot of people just kind of want to skip that step because the curbside bins are so much more convenient. You don’t have to sort, etc.
Speaking of things that make recycling more difficult, I do want to talk a little bit about certain consumables that are difficult to recycle in the outdoor industry. Specifically, what comes to my mind right away is the fuel canisters for a stove. So like the green ones are probably the most common ones, but they have the small ones as well that are like white and orange.
Those fuel canisters are made from easily recyclable materials, but the container itself, because of the contents and the way that it's made, make it really hard to recycle. So we could talk about how to recycle that one, but then also if you know about other consumables other than just packaging, like we've been talking about, that can be recycled, that would be great too.
Courtney: Yeah, so those fuel canisters are a very commonly used material in the outdoor industry where people are like, "Okay, I'm done with this. Now what do I do with it?" I already feel kind of, like you mentioned, it's difficult figuring out how to dispose of it anyway because of the content of it.
But believe it or not, they're pretty easy to recycle because they're just considered a mixed metal. That process can be a little bit more complicated than just throwing it in your bin and having it taken off at the curb. So I used to work at a little gear store, and people would bring them up there and we would recycle them there.
What that can look like is bringing them up to a mixed metal space or again finding a space that you can bring them to, and they'll recycle it for you. The biggest thing to do is, one, making sure that it's completely empty. Right? You want to make sure you use all that gas out of there, burn them off. And then if you think there's a little bit of gas left, you can purge it by attaching it to your stove and opening the valve just to kind of get any little bit that's left in there out, even if it's not really enough for cooking.
Then once you are sure that your canister is empty, you just need to puncture it so it meets those recycling requirements. That just makes sure that it's not going to be combustible, there's not any more fuel or anything like that in it.
You can do that with any kind of sharp household object—if that's a can opener, a screwdriver, or an ice ax, if that's a household object for you. But don't want to use anything like a saw that's going to create that friction because it could potentially ignite any remaining fuel. You don’t even have to like remove the valve or anything like that because it's also considered part of that mixed metal breakdown.
I have also seen those little—I don't know what they're called—but some companies that make the stoves have a little plastic device that you can use that just opens the valve on the top of the canister and that empties it, so you don’t even have to attach it to your stove.
Meg: I do know those exist and they make the process a little bit easier, in my experience, to like actually feel confident that it has been emptied. Because I get nervous like puncturing the side of it. But once it is punctured, I don't know if you already said this, but can you put it in your bin once it's been punctured and labeled as empty, or do you have to bring it to a drop-off location?
Courtney: From what I understand, I think it goes back to what your county is going to accept. If they accept most other mixed metals, then you are probably good to go. But if you have any hesitation about it, I would recommend calling and asking, or even like next time you're at the gear store, ask what that process looks like or whatever that drop-off location is.
Before you bring it up there, you can ask them where they take it or what that looks like. But from my personal experience, I have not lived in a space that has accepted them on curbside. I think just because, at first glance, it looks like kind of an intimidating material to handle. But once they're punctured or empty, then they're totally safe and okay to handle.
Meg: Other than those fuel canisters, are there any other materials that would commonly be used in the outdoor industry that aren't often recycled but could be?
I can't think of any like right off the top of my head, but do you know of any?
Courtney: Yeah, so I think after that, it would probably be textiles. If you're an outdoor gear junkie or you like having outdoor gear and clothing like I do, you probably burn through your favorite pair of tights or your favorite pair of hiking boots a few times.
Sometimes those things get to the point where, you know, Tenacious Tape or whatever is not going to hold it together anymore. There are companies that have programs, like the Patagonia Worn Wear program, where you can bring in your worn-out textiles.
Oftentimes, they'll recycle those textiles into clothing, buy them back, or repair them, depending on the program. Before you throw out your old shirt, pants, or whatever it is, looking into different companies' programs is a good idea.
I recently heard—though I’m not sure of the accuracy—that Arc'teryx also has a similar program. Patagonia definitely gets a lot of attention for this, especially since they do a lot of 1% for the Planet initiatives, but there are other companies with similar programs.
So before you throw out your old Keen boots or whatever it may be, looking into what their warranty or recycling program is like is definitely worth it.I think North Face is another big company that does a program similar to Patagonia’s, so if you have some of their clothing, that’s another place to send it or to resell through.
Because outdoor industry folks tend to be more environmentally focused, I’ve also seen a rise in the reuse and repurpose realm. For example, for things like bike tires and tubes or even wetsuits, there are companies where you can send those items, and they'll make them into something else.
Same with sails from sailboats—you can send old sails to certain companies, and they will remake them into something useful. I think that's really cool if it's a product that's really difficult to actually recycle.
Meg: Are there any other ones that you can think of?
Courtney: Not off the top of my head. I’ve definitely seen a few programs in place, like what you're talking about. Even small artists make earrings or purses out of bike tubes, or rugs out of old climbing rope. There are just great ways for those things to be upcycled.
I understand that some people don’t want to put the time or energy into upcycling those things themselves, but definitely looking into programs that can make use of those products before they go into the waste bin—or even the recycling bin—is a really great option.
Meg: A couple companies off the top of my head, if anyone listening wants to check them out, specifically for climbing ropes: there’s a company called Crag Dog that turns ropes into dog toys and leashes, which is cool.
Green Guru is one of the companies I was thinking of that works with bike materials, specifically bike tubes. They make different bike bags out of the tubes, so they’re waterproof and really durable.
And then I think Metamorphic Gear works with sails and wetsuits. I can link to those if people are interested in getting rid of old gear that’s been collecting dust and they don’t know what to do with it.
Those are great companies to send those items to. There are probably other ones as well, but these are the main three I’ve heard of with positive results.
Can you think of any other resources that would be valuable to listeners, whether it's about their curbside recycling, food packaging, or outdoor industry recycling?
Courtney: I would definitely recommend checking in with local organizations and companies working to create systems for everyone, like gear stores or climbing gyms. See how they got started and where they got their process going.
Also, just being mindful of what your county accepts and what they don’t. Understanding that it’s not a perfect system is important—it probably will never be a perfect system. But if you're actively trying to be more aware of your consumption and waste, don’t feel guilty about larger-scale issues that are out of your control.
Meg: Yeah, it’s really easy to fall into negative self-talk or a negative mindset surrounding those things that are out of your control, so that’s a very positive message. I know you have a lot of other projects going on in your life, so how can people reach out to you if they want to learn more about your work?
Courtney: The two biggest ways to keep in touch with me are through my Instagram, which is @__courtneydanielle__, and then the other best way is to follow my blog, Wasteland Creates on WordPress. I run a lifestyle blog where I talk about mental health and share my photographs, so if that’s something you're interested in, you can follow there as well.
Meg: Very cool. Well, I am very grateful that you had time to jump on here and talk about recycling. I know it’s maybe not the most glamorous or exciting topic to discuss, but I do think it’s really important and valuable. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.
Courtney: Thank you so much for having me.
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