BOISE, Idaho — Christmas day has come and gone, gifts have been opened, wrapping paper and accessories are everywhere, and trees are being taken down.
Now, it's time for the Christmas cleanup.
Recycling is a great way to be a good neighbor. But with all the different Christmas items and accessories, it can be hard to know what things go into which bin.
"The first thing everybody realizes after the holidays is just how much waste is created," Gabe Brenner, materials manager for the City of Boise's Curb It program said. "The first thing that we want people to recognize is to be conscious of the amount of waste that they create - and to reduce and reuse as much as possible."
Boise's Curb It team is the city's trash, recycling, compost and solid waste program. They have a comprehensive online guide on what items should be composted, recycled, or thrown away.
"Here in Boise, we all respect the environment," Brenner said. "It's where we live, it's where we play, it's where we recreate. We want to make sure that we're keeping it as clean as possible, and part of that is responsibly managing the materials that we create, produce and throw away."
That can be done through three R's - reduce, reuse, recycle - and making sure your waste goes into the right bin.
In Boise, the gray bins are for trash, green-lid bins are for compost and blue bins are for recycling.
KTVB invited Brenner to play a game of 'Is This Recyclable?' with several common holiday items:
Are glass bottles recyclable?
"Yes, but not in your blue bin at home. You'll want to take your glass to one of our drop-off sites. You can find all of our drop-off sites on our website."
Are gift bags recyclable?
"[Glitter and ribbons] are generally a sign that bag isn't going to be recyclable, you're going to want to put that in the trash. However, wrapping tissue paper - you can absolutely put that into the blue bins."
Are aluminum foil trays and aluminum foil recyclable?
"Yes, as long as all the food has been rinsed off, you can go ahead and ball that up into a softball-sized ball, and put that into your blue bin."
Are bows recyclable?
"Ribbons and bows are not recyclable."
Is wrapping paper recyclable?
"Wrapping paper is recyclable, as long as it's normal wrapping paper and doesn't have any foil or glitter on it - you can go ahead and put it into your blue bin."
Are Christmas decorations recyclable?
"Any holiday decorations - stockings, ornaments - those are not recyclable. If you do need to get rid of them, try donating or thrifting them."
Are gift boxes recyclable?
"When you don't really know what it's made out of - maybe it's plastic, maybe it's cardboard - when in doubt, throw it out. If you're not sure what it's made out of, don't put it in the recycling bin and wishcycle, make sure it gets put into the trash bin."
Are Christmas cards recyclable?
"When it's just a normal, paper card - there's no foil, there's no glitter, there's no electronics - you can go ahead and put that into the blue bin."
Are cardboard boxes recyclable?
"Absolutely. Cardboard boxes should go into the recycling bin at home. Just make sure it's flattened out as best as you can."
Are Christmas trees recyclable?
"What you want to do is take off all the lights and ornaments. For a real tree, you'll want to chop it up into pieces and put it into your compost bin."
There are other Treasure Valley cities that will take that old Christmas tree off your hands.
Meridian has free curbside tree removal from January 2 - 6. Trees will be picked up on regular trash service days by a separate truck.
Nampa residents can recycle their trees through January 15 by dropping them off at Kohlerlawn Cemetery between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Caldwell Parks and Rec is recycling trees until January 15. Residents can drop their trees off in the lot at the corner of Arthur and S. 22nd Ave.
More information about what can and can't be recycled in the City of Trees can be found on Boise's Curb It program website.
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