Recycle This Pittsburgh

Plastic Party Cups

About These Items

These plastic cups are often found at public events or purchased for private parties or meetings. Though these cups are often marked as a “recyclable” plastic, they are not collected via the city’s curbside recycling. They are not very valuable as a recycled material, and they are so thin and brittle that they can cause problems during the sorting process. These cups, typically used for less than a few hours, can take hundreds of years to decompose in a landfill.

There is one local hauler that is now collecting these items for recycling, though you must drop-off your items at their location outside the city- see below for details.

Reduce your impact– Say “No” to the single-use plastic cup.

Consider carrying a reusable drinking cup or reusable bottle. You can purchase collapsible cups that are easy to carry around. Most places will fill your cup or bottle.

If you have young kids, you may have experienced restaurants that automatically bring your child’s drink in a one-time use plastic cup, instead of serving it in a glass. If you know your child is comfortable using a regular glass, be sure to tell your waiter “no plastic cups, please” when ordering drinks.

Planning an event? Avoid these cups.

If you’re planning an event, consider:

• Using re-usable cups. (If you can’t provide them, considering asking ask your attendees to bring their own cup or mug)
• Using paper cups or cups made of already-recycled materials to reduce the impact of your event (Note: Paper cups also typically can’t be recycled but do breakdown better than plastic bottles.)
• Using a re-usable dish service such as Dianne’s Dishware
• Using compostable cups, like those used by the Three Rivers Arts Festival through PRC’s Zero Waste program. Keep in mind that ​compostable plastics should NOT be placed in curbside recycling and most are designed for composting through a commercial composter. Read more about compostable plastics here.
• If you must use a single-use plastic party cup, look for a cup made from already recycled plastics to support the recycling market and reduce the amount of new plastic you introduce into the environment.
• You could also consider serving drinks in plastic bottles– the standard PET plastic drinking bottle is actually more desirable as a recyclable material than these plastic cups and can be recycled via the city’s curbside recycling program

If #1 or #2, Collect and Drop-off for Recycling.

If your cups are marked as #1 or #2 plastic, there is one semi-local place you can now drop these items off. Michael Brothers Hauling is collecting ALL #1 and #2 plastics (including clamshells, cups, etc) at their location at 901 Horning Rd. 15236. They also accept (and even pay for) scrap metal. Their drop-off is a drive through.