Can I recycle cardboard and other packaging?

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We asked you to send your household recycling questions, and among the inquiries we got back: What about coated cardboard food canisters (think Pringles), the cardboard cores of paper towel and toilet tissue rolls, and dispensers for hearing-aid batteries. We’ve compiled answers into this one installment of Can I Recycle ... ?

Cardboard canisters lined with foil -- the kind of packaging often used in containers for Pringles chips and other snacks -- cannot be recycled in Los Angeles’ blue bins. They are made from a mix of materials that cannot be separated, so they should be placed in the black trash bin. Only the plastic lid can be recycled.

Because policies and recommendations can vary from city to city, each week we ask a sampling of officials from various municipalities to weigh in. Can you recycle coated cardboard food canisters in ...

Burbank: Only the lid.

Long Beach: Only the lid.

Los Angeles: Only the lid.

Manhattan Beach: Yes.

Riverside: Only the lid.

Santa Monica: Yes.

Torrance: No. The plastic lid can be recycled only if it includes a recycling symbol.

Unincorporated Los Angeles: Only the lid.

Ventura: Only the lid.

Keep in reading for the answers on paper towel and toilet tissue cores and more ...

PAPER TOWEL AND TOILET TISSUE CORES The cardboard cores of paper towel and toilet tissue rolls can be recycled in Los Angeles’ blue bin. Because policies and recommendations can vary from city to city, each week we ask a sampling of officials from various communities to weigh in. Can you recycle paper towel and toilet paper cores in ...

Arcadia: Yes

Burbank: Yes

Glendale: Yes

Irvine: Yes

Long Beach: Yes

Los Angeles: Yes

Manhattan Beach: Yes

Pasadena: Yes

Riverside: Yes

Santa Ana: Yes

Santa Barbara: Yes

Santa Monica: Yes

Torrance: Yes

Unincorporated L.A.: Yes

West Hollywood: Yes

HEARING AID DISPENSERS

Sure, most people know that the batteries themselves must be taken to special locations that recycle electronic waste. But what about the hard plastic dispensers in which the batteries are sold?

Los Angeles residents can recycle those dispensers in their blue bins. Due to the dispensers’ small size, however, the city recommends that residents place several dispensers in a sealed plastic bag before placing that bag in the blue bin.

Because policies and recommendations can vary from city to city, each week we ask a sampling of officials from various municipalities to weigh in. Can you recycle plastic hearing-aid battery dispensers in ...

Arcadia: Yes

Burbank: Yes

Glendale: No

Irvine: Yes

Long Beach: Yes, if marked with a recycling symbol

Los Angeles: Yes

Manhattan Beach: No

Pasadena: Yes, if marked with a recycling symbol

Riverside: Yes

Santa Ana: Yes

Santa Monica: No

Torrance: Yes, if marked with a recycling symbol

Unincorporated L.A.: Yes

Ventura: Yes

West Hollywood: Yes

RELATED:

The archive: Can I Recycle ... ?

What to do with Keurig coffee capsules

The art of recycling rain in your home garden

-- Susan Carpenter

Photos, from top: Arkasha Stevenson / Los Angeles Times, Tobias Titz / Getty Images, Los Angeles Times