Successful blue bin recycling would be easier if it weren’t for plastic. Some kinds of plastic can be recycled, and some can’t and the numbers are not helpful.

"What's extra confusing is the fact there’s a system for the resin codes, the numbers on the bottom that eople assumed, logically, because they are in a recycling symbol on the bottom of the product that means it can be recycled," Kristen Lawton of Onondaga County Resource Recovery Agency said.

The numbers actually denote the type of plastic the product is made from, not if it's recyclable. Instead, pay attention to the shape of plastic products.

"If you have a bottle and it's plastic, put it right in the blue bin," said Lawton. "You don’t need to look at the bottom to check the number. If it’s a bottle it’s recyclable."

The same rationale applies to plastic jugs and wide-mouth stackable dairy tubs.

"Anything that has a wide mouth and is stackable and typically contains dairy whether it’s a butter tub or a cool whip container," Lawton added.

But don’t be led astray by egg cartons, whether made of plastic, Styrofoam or even paper. 

"Those should actually go in the trash," Lawton said. "Believe it or not those go in the trash."

That's because paper egg cartons have already been recycled many times. Plastic bags, on the other hand, can be recycled just not in your recycling bin. They contaminate your blue bin and slow the recycling process.

"They should be returned to any big box store that gives out plastic bags. They’re required by New York state law to take them back for recycling," Lawton said.

Thin filmed plastic like plastic bubble wrap can also go in the blue bin, as long as its clean and dry.