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Question:

When recycling paper, I always pull out the envelopes with the clear plastic windows. Is this necessary?

I figure that the little windows are plastic, not paper, and shouldn't be included with the paper products in the bins at the recycling centers. Am I right or wrong? It takes a lot of extra time to sort through all the junk mail in order to discard these envelopes.

Answer:

you are just a devoted recycler...
You are so right, the plastic window harms the sorting machine, it has to be done by hand, so well done, keep it up.
It depends where you live. Where I live we don't have to sort our recyclables at all. Just put them in a special plastic blue box that the city gives us.
In my city, Los Angeles, it's okay to put the envelopes with the clear windows in with the recyclable paper. My city is even okay with staples! Check your city's website.
Yes your right to do that! I reuse my envelopes, just open them carefully then stick a label over the window and VOILA a new envelope! I'm not tight, I'm eco friendly!

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