The Importance of Recycling: Keeping Long Beach Clean

As the population continues to grow, limited resources become a bigger concern. Recycling is one of the ways we can conserve and reuse the limited resources we have on Earth. Your recycling efforts help us protect the environment by sending less waste to landfills.

At Corridor Recycling, it’s our mission to make recycling easy. Our Long Beach recycling center makes it convenient to get rid of your recycling — and you can even get paid for some of it. Learn more about why recycling plays a key role in keeping Long Beach clean.

How Recycling Impacts the Environment

Everything you use on a daily basis is made from a limited natural resource. The resources we use to make plastic bottles, various types of metal, and electronics continue to deplete as the population grows and manufacturing increases.

Recycling allows us to reuse some of our natural resources to minimize our impact on the environment. Recycled metal can be used to make cans, car parts, window frames, and more. As the population continues to grow, recycling is a key part of making sure we have enough resources for the future.

What Materials Are Recyclable?

Lots of household items are recyclable, so watch what you throw away. Here are some of the materials we accept at Corridor Recycling.

Plastic

Plastic is one of the most commonly used materials — from plastic bottles and milk jugs to crates and plastic bags. Instead of throwing your plastic bags and bottles in the trash, bring them to us and we’ll recycle them for you. Recycle plastic can be used to make new plastic bottles, plastic strapping for shipping, and more.

Soda and water bottles are California Redemption Value (CRV) containers, which means you receive $0.05 for each small plastic bottle you return.

Metal

Metal isn’t just one of the most important materials today; it’s also one of the most recyclable. Steel is one of the most recycled materials in the world because it can easily be melted down and repurposed. If you’re throwing away an old grill or car part, it’s probably worth recycling instead.

Assorted metal recycling also includes CRV containers. Any canned beverage you pay a deposit on can be exchanged for $0.05 at our Long Beach recycling center.

Glass

While most brands have switched from glass bottles to plastic or metal containers, glass recycling is still essential. Glass can be recycled and converted into new glass bottles or jars, insulation, and other useful resources.

Like plastic and metal, some glass containers are also CRV containers. Smaller glass bottles can be redeemed for $0.05 and containers over 24 ounces can be redeemed for $0.10.

Paper

Recycling paper may seem insignificant, but paper recycling helps us cut down on emissions. Making new paper from trees requires a lot more energy than using recycled paper, so it’s better to recycle and reuse.

There are countless types of paper you can recycle at home and work. White printer paper and paper from notebooks can be recycled, as well as newspaper and colored office paper. If you have old phone books, magazines, or catalogs lying around, we can recycle those too.

Cardboard

Whether you work in a warehouse or frequently order from Amazon, cardboard can pile up quickly. Fortunately, you can get rid of all that cardboard and do your part to protect the environment when you recycle. The cardboard we recycle is used to make chipboard for cereal boxes, paper towels, and paper.

Cardboard piling up can be a big problem during the holidays. If you have a stack of cardboard boxes that can’t fit in your curbside recycling container, bring them to us and we’ll take care of them.

Electronic waste

Electronic waste is one of the biggest environmental problems because the resources we use to make electronics are extremely limited. Precious metals like copper, gold, silver, palladium, and platinum play an essential role in everything from smartphones to computers.

Instead of throwing your old electronics away, bring them to our Long Beach recycling center. Here are some of the electronics we accept:

Cables
Circuit boards
Computers and monitors
Laptops
Mice and keyboards
Smartphones
Televisions
Wires and plugs

How Does Recycling Work?

At Corridor Recycling, it’s our mission to make recycling simple. When you visit our Long Beach recycling center, all you have to do is load your recycling into your car or truck. We can unload everything for you and take care of the rest of the process.

We also offer recycling and collection equipment for businesses. Whether you need a baler and compactor or a 40-yard bin for recycling, we’ve got solutions that meet your needs.

We don’t offer any coupons at Corridor Recycling, but we’re happy to honor competitor’s coupons with current expiration dates.

Curbside recycling

Curbside recycling is a simple way to make sure you’re recycling as much as possible. Trash pickup companies charge you a relatively small fee to rent cans for your garbage and recycling. All you have to do is fill these containers up and wheel them out the curb each week before your trash pickup day.

One downside to curbside recycling is that it costs money and you don’t get paid for CRV containers and metal.

Can I Get Paid to Recycle?

You can get paid for certain types of recycling. If you drink bottled or canned beverages, you can bring your CRV containers to Corridor Recycling to get $0.05 for containers under 24 ounces and $0.10 for containers above 24 ounces. The money you make redeeming CRV containers can help pay for small expenses like gas and groceries.

Some recyclable materials are worth a lot — especially in large amounts. You can get paid to recycle various types of metal, including:

Aluminum
Brass
Copper
Steel

You can even get paid for bringing large amounts of paper or cardboard to a recycling center. If you have any questions about our rates or what materials we pay for, feel free to give us a call before you visit in person.

Recycling Myths

You’ve probably heard lots of myths about recycling and how it’s not as effective as it seems. Let’s take a look at some popular recycling myths and dispel them.

Myth #1: Recycled materials end up in the landfill

The recycling industry isn’t a myth — the materials we collect are recycled and reused. If recyclable materials were going to end up in the landfill anyway, there would be no separate bins and recycling centers wouldn’t pay you to recycle.

Myth #2: Recycling uses more resources than it saves

Energy and other resources are used in the recycling process, but recycling saves energy. For example, it takes significantly less energy to recycle aluminum cans instead of making cans from raw materials. That same principle applies to steel, paper, plastic, and glass.

Myth #3: One contaminant can ruin a load of recycling

We always recommend following guidelines when it comes to cleaning recyclable containers, but one contaminant won’t ruin the rest of the recycling we collect. It’s time-consuming, but we can remove contaminants and clean a load of recycling if we need to

Keep Your Community Clean With Corridor Recycling

We all play a key role in keeping our communities clean, and recycling is one of the many responsibilities we have. At Corridor Recycling, we make it easy to recycle — and get paid for your recycling — to help you do your part to protect the environment.