Portlanders Can Now Get Home-Pickup Service for Hard-to-Recycle Items

In November, Ridwell, a Seattle-based recycling company, expanded its home-pickup service to Portland, Ore., offering residents a new way to responsibly get rid of items not accepted in curbside bins. So far, it has signed up more than 2,000 customers in the city.

For a monthly fee of $12-$16, the company will collect unwanted items including plastic bags, bubble wrap, clothing, light bulbs, and batteries—and pass them along to recyclers or other entities that can make use of them.    

“We’re always looking for reuse first,” notes Ridwell founder and CEO Ryan Metzger. “And, if we can’t find that, we’re looking for recyclers that can keep things [out of] landfills.”

In Portland, the company delivers reusable items to Rose Haven shelter, PDX Diaper Bank and Free Geek. Collected plastic wrap and bags are shipped to a facility that converts them into a composite, which is ultimately made into a decking material.  

Last year, Ridwell recycled or repurposed 900,000 pounds of waste in Seattle, including 300,000 pounds of plastic film.

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