One think California does I think Oklahoma should.
By Amber
@AmbiePam (112691)
United States
December 28, 2025 9:45am CST
While I was in California, I noticed they did something they didn’t do when I lived there as a child. Now, I knew they did it, but I hadn’t seen it. It was at fast food places where the trash was. One can was for trash, and one was for recyclables. Now, I imagine there are accidental or on purpose crossovers in those bins, but I still like that. I would love for Oklahoma to do that. Several other states, I imagine, have done it for a very long time.
At my dad’s house the city gives out one bin for trash, and one for recyclables, but at my apartment complex we just have regular dumpsters. About two miles away though, there is a parking lot with a dumpster for paper, one for electronics, one for cardboard, and one for cans. I used to go there all the time, but the last two times I went, no one had emptied the dumpsters and there was no place to put them.
19 people like this
19 responses
@FourWalls (82892)
• United States
28 Dec
There are a number of restaurants I’ve been in that have that, all over the country. It’s not unique to California. I agree, it’s a great idea.
4 people like this
@DaddyEvil (167942)
• United States
28 Dec
We only have one trash bin in front of the house and everything goes in it. The closest place you can take recyclables is in Springfield, about 60 miles away. (Except for aluminum. There is an aluminum recycling center across town from us. They buy the aluminum.)
4 people like this
@snowy22315 (202943)
• United States
28 Dec
Some restaurants here sort trash and recyables. We have recycle bins at the trash dump, but no one collects electronics I wish they did..
4 people like this
@RasmaSandra (94219)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
28 Dec
I always wondered about this. When I lived in NYC, our apartment building had several containers for different trash. Now I just dump what I have in the bin below my porch and the guys just put it out for the garbage men but nothing is sorted.
2 people like this
@Marilynda1225 (88661)
• United States
30 Dec
We also have two bins (one for trash, one for recycling) and it gets picked up once a week. I never really paid attention to trash bins at fast food places. I'm usually a drive thru and on my way 
1 person likes this
@MarshaMusselman (38865)
• Midland, Michigan
28 Dec
We've done recycling for quite a few years with pickups at the road every month where I live. But I don't think that public places generally put out bins for each. At work in the breakrooms they have a place for each one. Actually not for recyclables but for mainly pop containers from the vending machines.
1 person likes this
@noni1959 (12492)
• United States
29 Dec
We have that here as well. Many of the state parks have them as well. As a volunteer, I helped empty them to take to the shop to make their way to recycling. Here in town, for homes, they have one for trash and one for recycles. In Oregon, we had crates to put bottles in (some counties.) I am from CA and before moving from there, we only had a trash container. Businesses had dumpsters. I know they most likely had recycle too but I didn't see it except at LAX.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (213774)
• United States
30 Dec
We have the option to have an additional dumpster at an extra charge for recyclables.
1 person likes this
@Dreamerby (9920)
• Calcutta, India
30 Dec
Here they have dry and wet waste separation
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (167727)
• United States
29 Dec
I see this a lot at zoos and public parks and rest areas, believe it or not. As far as the large recyclable community dumpster, we used to have one in Florence and one or two in Marion, but the place they had contracted with found it to be no longer profitable.
1 person likes this
@annierose (21955)
• United States
29 Dec
In our household, we only have two trash bins. One is for regular trash—paper, plastics, and food scraps, etc. The other one is for recyclable materials.
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (129584)
• Marion, Ohio
28 Dec
It's a good thing to do. Just sadly many people mess them up.
1 person likes this
