Need help recycling? Ask Lottie Sortwell

Hayward is welcoming a new member to its recycling team. Meet Lottie Sortwell, a chatbot dedicated to helping Hayward residents sort their waste properly. Lottie is an AI-enabled digital assistant designed to chat via texts or online, offering the latest information about recycling in Hayward.  

Hayward’s recycling program uses a combination of machinery and hand sorting at the recycling facility to manage items such as bottles, cans, paper, and cardboard. Placing non-recyclable items in the recycling container can contaminate valuable materials, causing them to be landfilled instead of recycled. Some non-recyclable items can also damage equipment at the recycling facility. For example, garden hoses and clothes hangers are not recyclable and often get caught in the equipment at the recycling facility, forcing operational shutdowns for removal and potentially damaging the equipment.  

If you’re unsure about how to dispose of an item, you can text Lottie for quick, reliable guidance on proper sorting. 

Below are some basic tips to recycle properly and avoid common mistakes when recycling in Hayward.  

1. Don’t place bagged recycling or plastic bags in the recycling. Dump your recyclables directly into the recycle cart and toss the plastic bag in the trash.
2. Film plastics and flimsy plastics go in the trash, even if they have a recycling symbol.
3. Pizza boxes go in the organics cart.
4. All extruded polystyrene foam (aka StyrofoamTM) - whether used for food or from packaging - goes in the trash.    

Contact Lottie Sortwell with your recycling questions. For additional guidance, try the  Re:source  tool, which will tell you how to dispose of certain products within your specific zip code.  For even more rules and tips, check out  Waste Management’s  Recycling Myths  guidebook, or visit the City’s  website.