Paper Recycling in Salt Lake City

What types of paper can you recycle in SLC?

• Newspaper and newspaper inserts
• Paper shopping bags
• Paper mailers/envelopes. If you have a paper mailer padded with bubble wrap, you can recycle the paper portion after separating from the plastic.
• Cardboard boxes. No need to remove tape/labels. Break down boxes to save room for others in public cardboard drop-offs, and this also helps save room in the truck for less trips to the recycling facility.
• Cardboard or paperboard packaging. Examples are shoe boxes, cardboard egg cartons, tissue boxes, boxes for toothpaste, soap, cosmetics, and medications, or boxes for foods like cereal, pasta, or cake mix. Note that those with a waxy coating that can be scraped off with your fingernail (usually seen on frozen or refrigerated foods packaging) cannot be recycled.
• Lightly soiled pizza boxes. If the bottom has a lot of grease or cheese, tear off the top half to recycle and throw the greasy part in the trash.
• Cardboard tubes (paper towel, TP, and wrapping paper)
• Books & magazines. Catalogs, manuals, brochures, paperback workbooks, paperback books, and phone books (do they still even make those?)
• White and colored paper (glossy ok), construction paper, post-it notes, paperboard, poster board, greeting cards, notebooks, note cards, folders, letters and envelopes (including those with windows), postcards, coupons, junk mail.
• Art projects using crayons, colored pencils, markers, paint, or glue (as long as there isn’t excessive amounts)
• Wrapping paper, tissue paper, paper gift bags. As long as they are not metallic or coated with glitter or lots of decorations.

Depending on recycling company

• *Aseptic cartons aka tetrapaks (Momentum Recycling customers only). Aseptic cartons are the waxy cartons that contain liquids. Shelf-stable cartons can sit in your pantry, these are things like juice boxes, soups, gravy, nut milks, and wine. Refrigerated, aka gable-top, cartons are found in the refrigerated section of the grocery store and contain foods such as milk, cream, juice, and egg substitutes. Some areas accept both refrigerated and shelf-stable, others take only one kind.

What paper items cannot be recycled?

• Tissue products (napkins, paper towels, toilet paper)
• Receipts. The thermal paper they are printed on isn’t recyclable. (If you scratch the paper and it leaves a grey line, it is thermal paper.)
• Items soaked with grease, fats, oil, or chemicals, including cleaning products.
• Hardback books
• Coffee cups or any other waxy coated cup.
• Shredded paper. SLC residents may NOT place shredded paper in the blue recycling bin; instead you may drop it off at International Paper Recycling.

Cardboard recycling in Salt Lake City

Cardboard is acceptable in curbside bins, but if you don’t have access to curbside or have more cardboard than will fit in your bin, there are several cardboard drop off locations.

Rocky Mountain Recycling has a public drop-off bin for cardboard recycling, located at 3110 S 900 W.

Green Fiber used to have paper recycling dumpsters behind all Salt Lake School District schools that were available to the public, but they do not any longer. Cardboard and other paper can be dropped off to them at 3061 South 3600 West.

International Paper Recycling, 2590 West 1500 South, is another option to drop off cardboard and any other type of paper for reyccling.

Certified Shred is a great option for any paper shredding needs. They recycle paper at International Recycling. My husband uses this service at his office and has been happy with it.

Learn more about the environmental impacts of paper production here.

Where to buy sustainable paper products in Salt Lake City

The most eco-friendly paper products are made from recycled materials. Learn how you can decrease paper waste here.

Shop at local book stores

• The King’s English Bookshop
• Ken Sanders Rare Books
• Weller Bookworks
• Central Book Exchange – you can also trade in your used books for other titles.
• Thrift stores, such as The Other Side or DI.

Where to donate books in Salt Lake City

• Donate books to any Salt Lake Public Library location or the U of U Marriott library. Besides books, both of these locations will also accept DVDs, CDs, and LPs. The Marriott library will also take video games, consoles (any condition), controllers, and cables.
• Donate to local thrift stores.

Office paper

Staples carries numerous paper products made from recycled paper.

Where to find recycled or bamboo tissue products

• Hello Bulk Markets – Who Gives a Crap
• Harmon’s – Caboo, Bim Bam Boo, Seventh Generation
• Whole Foods – 365, Seventh Generation, Bim Bam Boo
• Smith’s – Seventh Generation
• Trader Joe’s – TP is made from recycled paper
• Target – Everspring, Reel