As the holiday season wraps up – no pun intended – knowing what to do with the abundance of waste you accrued over the course of the season is important. Wish-cycling, or tossing something in your recycling bin with a bit too much optimism, is extremely detrimental to the recycling process.

Throwing out holiday waste in hopes of it being recycled can lead to recycling bins being contaminated and redesignated as trash. John Patriquin/Press Herald photo

Throwing away your holiday waste in hopes of it being recycled can lead to your recycling bin being too contaminated for ecomaine to sort and recycle and therefore be redesignated as trash.

To help you navigate your way through recycling this season, here’s just a few classic items and what you should do with them post-holidays:

How do I dispose of:

Bows (reuse or trash).

Wrapping paper (reuse or recycle).

Tissue paper (reuse or trash).

Paper gift bags (reuse or recycle).

Mesh gift bags (reuse or trash).

Cardboard boxes (recycle).

Boxes with plastic windows (remove plastic and put in trash; recycle cardboard).

Ornaments and decorations (reuse, donate or trash).

Christmas lights (reuse, donate, or bring to local transfer station).

Artificial Christmas trees (reuse, donate or bring to local transfer station).

South Portland Recycles app

Still have questions on how to get rid of holiday waste? Don’t know what bin to throw your ribbon, bows, and boxes in?

The South Portland Recycles app has the answers to all of your recycling questions. Download the free app on Apple or Google Play stores for features such as ecomaine’s Recyclopedia – simply type in any item and see how to best dispose of it.

With the South Portland Recycles app, you can also check the pickup schedule for your address, add trash set-out reminders to your calendar and sign up for alerts such as disruptions in service.

Our Sustainable City is a recurring column in the Sentry intended to provide residents with news and information about sustainability initiatives in South Portland. Follow the Sustainability Office on Instagram and Facebook @soposustainability.

Mia Ambroiggio is a part-time South Portland Sustainability Office staff member. She can be reached at mambroiggio@southportland.org.