Holiday Recycling Guide

Don’t Let the Holidays Go to Waste

Wrapping paper can be recycled if it can be crushed or balled up—but no glitter paper and no metallic paper.
Tissue paper cannot be recycled (it’s too low-grade) and neither can bows, ribbons or Mylar wrap.
Paper gift bags can be recycled—but no shiny bags and no glitter bags.
Try to keep and reuse gift bags, gift boxes and drawstring pouches year after year.
Reduce waste by wrapping gifts with fabric or recyclable papers such as newspaper, magazine pages, posters, maps, blueprints, sheet music or artsy grocery bags.
Recycle cards—but not if they have glitter or sound-making devices.
Break down boxes for recycling—it helps the collection trucks move quickly.
Recycle paper invoices and receipts—as long as they don’t have a stickered backing.
Reuse plastic air pillows, bubble wrap or packing peanuts. You can typically drop off plastic packaging and bags at grocery stores or big-box retailers for recycling (search the Earth911 database for locations in Arlington). Packing peanuts can’t be recycled and should be tossed in the trash if not reused.
Food scraps like aging leftovers, bones, peels, rinds and even greasy paper napkins and pizza boxes should always go into the green curbside cart or an on-street compost machine.