For
beauty enthusiasts, there's no joy like testing out new releases or
standing behind the belief that you can never own too many lipsticks —
as you add two nearly identical coral shades to your shopping cart.
That's how we end up with vanity organizers and overflowing bathroom cabinets, waiting to use up all our vitamin C serum so we can try another.
But
what happens when you get to that last squeeze of foundation or reach
the pan of your go-to bronzer, or even when you realize it's time to get
rid of that blush that’s been sitting there for two years? Tossing your
empties seems like the obvious answer — but that may be more harmful to the planet than you think.
When
you send those compacts, containers, and lipstick tubes, you're
essentially contributing to the pileup of unrecyclable plastics in landfills. Every year, 120 billion units of packaging
are produced by the global cosmetics industry, according to a report by
Zero Waste Europe; that's 120 billion units that will eventually need
to be thrown out. Before the guilt trip hits you too hard, that doesn't
mean you should lay off buying makeup forever — but there are ways to be more conscious of the recycling process.
To learn more, we spoke to Gina Herrera, Director of North American Client Services for the recycling program TerraCycle,
which specializes in hard-to-recycle materials. She gave us the rundown
on everything you need to know about tossing your cosmetics in an
eco-friendly way.
Research Is Key
Being
more environmentally friendly with your makeup disposal can start with
the purchases you make. “When considering best practices for a minimal
impact on the planet, consumers should be mindful when making purchases
for beauty products,” says Herrera.
There are a variety of different factors you can look into: You can look for products with recyclable/refillable packaging, or alternatives like makeup removal towels.
You can also buy from brands that have recycling programs: MAC
Cosmetics, for example, has a Back To MAC initiative, where customers
can bring in six lipstick tubes to be recycled
by the brand and receive one lipstick for free in return. There’s also
Garnier, which allows you to send their products (with the TerraCycle
logo) to TerraCycle; with every unit collected, the beauty brand will
donate two cents to the charity of your choice.
What You Might Not Know
It’s
critical to know that simply tossing makeup products into recycling
bins is not enough — and might not even ensure those products are
properly recycled. “Where someone lives — as in, their local
municipality — will dictate what can be recycled in their area,” says
Herrera.“Each municipality has different recycling requirements, and
consumers should check with their town to find out what can be put in
their curbside bin.” This information could be found on your town or
city's official website, or on Call2Recycle.org.
Aside from the technicalities of location, there’s also the fact that many makeup products cannot be recycled.
The top culprits are anything with a mirror, pump, applicator, or
magnet, and makeup brushes, too. "There’s not a pump in the industry
that’s recyclable," Āether Beauty founder Tiila Abbitt previously told Refinery29.
Herrera
also emphasizes the importance of emptying out any excess product; this
applies whether you're sending the packaging off to organizations or
just curbside. Doing this ensures that harmful chemicals don't end up being thrown into waste streams
as facilities have to physically remove what's inside. The best way to
clean out the leftover product is to rinse out the packaging and put the
excess into a sealed jar before sending it off to the landfill; this
proper seal guarantees that chemicals aren't seeping into the trash,
which is ultimately harmful to the air.
What Now?
So,
you’ve done your research and realized that some of your favorite
products can’t be curbside recycled. That’s where recycling programs
come in. Start off by researching to see if the brand that makes the
product offers any initiatives; if it doesn't, that’s when you can look
into organizations like TerraCycle.
Signing up is free — and most programs under the organization are, too —
and once you’ve registered, you can look into all the programs offered
and solutions like zero waste boxes. In the United States alone,
TerraCycle has recycled over 16 million pieces of beauty packaging, and
now works with brands like eos, Burt's Bees, and L'Occitane.
“Beauty
packaging sent in to TerraCycle for recycling will be shredded,
cleaned, and sorted by plastic type,” explains Herrera. “The plastic
shreds will then be melted and formed into small plastic pellets that
can then be molded into a wide range of plastic products like plastic
lumber, decking, and playground equipment.”
Lastly,
it's also important to hold brands accountable and reach out to your
favorites — whether it's through social media or a contact page — to
create more sustainable packaging, offer recycling initiatives, or
partner with third-party programs. Many brands are coming to terms with
the fact that a shift is desperately needed and are repackaging products
to be eco-friendly, with zero waste brands also entering the market. Now, it's our responsibility to spend our coins wisely.
