Janesville, WI
Home MenuPlastic Bag Recycling
What Should We Do With Plastic Bags?
DO: Use reusable bags/sacks or paper bags as much as possible in lieu of plastic bags.
DO: Recycle clean plastic bags at participating retailers (see table below).
DO: Reuse plastic bags prior to disposal (e.g. waste can liners, dog waste, etc.).
It is important to keep clean plastic bags out of the landfill simply because they are not biodegradable and they can be recycled. Plastic bags seem to have a way of "floating" all over our roadways, parks, and yards - if we reduce our use we will keep our community cleaner.
Plastic bags are recycled into many different products. Most plastic bags are recycled into composite lumber but can also be reprocessed into small pellets, or post consumer resin, which can become feed stock for a variety of products such as new bags, pallets, containers, crates, and pipe. You can recycle your clean, dry, empty plastic bags by returning them to retailers that provide designated plastic bag recycling bins. The table below shows what our local retailers offer for plastic bag recycling.
DON'T: Place plastic bags in your recycling cart.
Plastic recycling bags are a major problem for recyclable material processors. They often get wrapped up in sorting equipment, causing downtime and excessive repair costs.
Plastic bag recycling and incentives at retailers in the City of Janesville:
| Store |
Plastic Bag Recycling Receptacle |
Incentives | Offer Reusable Bags | Signage | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schnucks | Yes (in the entrance) | No | Yes | Yes | -- |
| Daniels Sentry Foods | Yes (by the Courtesy Counter) | Yes ($0.05 off for every reusable bag you use; $0.02 off plastic) | Yes | Yes | -- |
| Festival Foods | Yes | Yes ($0.05 off when you bring bag back to shop) | Yes | -- | -- |
| Woodman's | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | -- |
| Walmart | Yes (at each entrance and customer service desk) | No | Yes | -- | -- |
| Aldi's | No | No* | No | -- | *Requires you to purchase bags at the check out or bring your own. |
| Sam's Club | Yes | No* | No | -- | *Requires you to take out purchases in cart, box, or your own bags |
| Target | Yes (near registers) | Yes ($0.05 off for reusable cloth bags) | Yes | -- | -- |
The City of Janesville does not specifically endorse any of these private businesses and does not guarantee the quality of service or pricing offered by these private businesses. If you are aware of other local businesses that offer plastic bag recycling services please let us know by clicking the feedback icon at the top of this webpage.
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