How to recycle all of your Amazon packaging
Tags: Environment, Sustainability, Amazon, How To, Wasted

Amazon has become an increasingly ubiquitous part of our lives, as more and more people receive weekly — and even daily — packages from the company. But as these packages pile up on doorsteps all over the world, a glaring issue has emerged: How do you recycle all those damn mailers?

Given the huge variety in packaging, the answer isn’t so clear.

Amazon does have guidelines around the topic, but David Pinsky, a senior plastics campaigner at Greenpeace, doesn’t think they’re very useful.

“While it is helpful to provide this information, does Amazon actually expect customers to reference this website and follow the steps (sometimes multiple in the case of its Prime Now insulated pouch) to attempt to recycle its packaging?” Pinsky, who works to make large companies reduce their single-plastic use, wrote in an email.

Instead, large corporations like Amazon need to take responsibility by getting rid of throwaway packaging and switching to reuse and refill systems, Pinsky explained.

Amazon does offer a program called Frustration-Free Packaging, or packaging made up of 100% recyclable materials without any unnecessary shipping boxes. And it’s working, to some extent. Since 2008, Amazon says programs such as FFP have “eliminated more than 665,000 tons of packaging materials — more than 1.18 billion shipping boxes.”

What’s more, in 2018, Amazon debuted a fully recyclable paper padded mailer.

But these sustainability efforts might not be going far enough. As the Washington Post reported, in an effort to pack more shipments into delivery planes and trucks, Amazon is using more small plastic mailers rather than cardboard boxes.

Many of the plastic mailers it uses (like its regular and bubble-lined plastic bags) include plastic film. Amazon notes on its website that some cities have curbside recycling programs, and if your city doesn’t, Amazon provides a website to find a drop-off location (which the website says refers to retail stores, municipal recycling centers, and private recyclers) that will take plastic film.

But there aren’t that many cities with curbside recycling programs that accept plastic film, says Darby Hoover, a senior resource specialist who works on plastic waste issues at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), an environmental advocacy organization. When it comes to recycling centers, even if they do accept plastic film, it can be hard, if not impossible, to process, as they often get caught in the center’s machinery, a spokesperson from the recycling, landfill, and compost operator Recology wrote in an email.

To avoid this problem, Recology workers try to manually remove loose plastic film before it enters the machinery, but this doesn’t always work.

“Amazon packages represent a challenging new packaging trend,” the Recology spokesperson explained.

And then there’s the paper address label. If it’s a self-adhesive label, it’s probably not recyclable, Hoover says.

“It’s pretty upsetting to see Amazon has gone in this direction by putting more single-use plastics on the market,” Pinsky says.

Although online shopping has become the de-facto way of living, it shouldn’t just be the customer’s responsibility to figure out how to recycle. Companies need to step up, too, Hoover says.

In the meantime, here’s how you can properly recycle Amazon’s packaging.

1. Paper padded mailer

IMAGE: AMAZON

Amazon says these paper padded mailers are recyclable, just like cardboard boxes and other paper items.

Paper products should be accepted by most curbside recycling programs, says Pinsky similarly.

2. Bubble-lined plastic bag and plastic bag