Here Come the Facts

In California, about 24.5 billion California Refund Value (CRV) eligible containers were sold in 2018.

California Refund Value (CRV) eligible containers were sold in 2018. Of those, more than 18.5 billion were recycled!

were recycled! Since 6 billion bottles and cans ended up in the landfill, nobody claimed the CRV on them. How much CRV? More than $100 million worth!

ended up in the landfill, nobody claimed the CRV on them. How much CRV? More than $100 million worth! CRV is 5¢ for bottles and cans less than 24 ounces, and 10¢ for larger ones.

for bottles and cans less than 24 ounces, and for larger ones. CRV refunds are available to anyone --consumers, companies, or nonprofits--who returns bottles and cans to a recycling center.

--consumers, companies, or nonprofits--who returns bottles and cans to a recycling center. By eliminating the need to manufacture new products from raw materials, recycling reduces energy use, in turn reducing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses in the air.

For every 10 pounds of aluminum you recycle, you eliminate 37 pounds of carbon emissions from the air.

you recycle, you eliminate from the air. For every 10 pounds of clear plastic water or soda bottles, 3.3 pounds of carbon emissions disappear.

water or soda bottles, disappear. And although glass bottles are a lot heavier, each 10 pounds recycled still reduces carbon by nearly a pound.

are a lot heavier, each recycled still In a landfill, aluminum cans take 80-100 years to break down.

to break down. Plastic bottles hang around as long as 700 years .

. Glass bottles spend 1 million years waiting around to decompose.

What Those Little Numbers Mean

While most plastic can be recycled, all plastic must be separated by type of polymer. Fortunately, recycling centers do this for you, so you don’t have to worry about it. But with this chart, it’s easy to imagine what the bottle or can you’re about to recycle will soon become.