Rhode Island adopts standardized recycling labels

Recycle Across America designs labels based on recyclables accepted in the state.

Rhode Island has become the first state in the U.S. to participate in Recycle Across America’s (RAA) national standardized recycling label program, according to an article by RI NPR.

RAA initiated the program to reduce confusion about the proper disposal of recyclables, regardless of location.

“We decided we needed to take a more simple approach with how we’re educating about recycling,” Krystal Noiseux, education and outreach manager for the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corp. (RIRRC) told RI NPR.

“And instead of shooting for the stars … we asked, ‘What is the most bare-bones simple information we can get out there that will produce cleaner, good recycling?’”

The RAA presented customized labels based on four what is recyclables in the state based on four categories the RIRRC indicated:

  • paper, cardboard and cartons;
  • metal, cans, lids and foil; 
  • glass, bottles and jars; and
  • plastic containers. 
“If you just stick to those four categories and do nothing else, you’re going to produce good quality recycling,” Noiseux told RI NPR.

RIRRC has distributed the standardized labels to public schools, state agencies and municipalities, the news site says. The private sector will have access to the free labels sometime this summer.