Which bin does it go in?
A greasy pizza box, a coffee cup, an old phone. Some things that look recyclable aren't, and dirty items can spoil the clean recycling around them. Sort them fast, the UAE way.
Green doesn't mean the same everywhere
Each emirate runs its own waste service, so bin colours differ. Always read the label on the bin.
Green bins for dry recyclables: paper, cardboard, plastic bottles, cans and glass. Black bins for general waste, including food, plastic bags and straws.
Homes in Bee'ah's household programme get a blue bin for recyclables and a green bin for general waste. So here green means the opposite of Abu Dhabi.
Bins vary by community and building. In Ras Al Khaimah, for example, some homes have one bin for food waste and one for recyclables. Check the label or ask your building.
Rinse bottles and jars, flatten boxes, and keep food and grease away from the recyclables.
Where do the special items go?
Batteries, electronics, medicine, energy-saving bulbs and cooking oil don't belong in a home bin.
In Abu Dhabi, Tadweer's Community Recycling Centres have separate hatches for electronic waste and hazardous household waste. In Dubai, Dubai Municipality's Smart Sustainability Oases take batteries and e-waste. Some e-waste recyclers accept drop-offs for free.
Return unused or expired medicine to a pharmacy that collects it, such as Dubai Health Authority pharmacies, or to a Tadweer recycling centre in Abu Dhabi. Don't flush it or bin it.
Never pour it down the sink: it clogs drains. In Sharjah, Bee'ah collects used oil and turns it into biodiesel. Where there's no collection, Dubai Municipality advises sealing it in a bottle before it goes in the bin.
In Abu Dhabi, Tadweer's reverse vending machines take empty plastic bottles and drink cans.
The plastic bag ban
Single-use plastic shopping bags are banned across the UAE: no import, production or trade. It's set by Resolution No. 380 of 2022, under the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment.
The ban grew to more single-use plastics, such as cups and lids, cutlery, plates, straws, stirrers and styrofoam food boxes.
Keep a reusable bag in the car or by the door. The best waste is the waste you never make.
Sources: Tadweer Group (Abu Dhabi) on green and black bins, Community Recycling Centres and reverse vending machines; Bee'ah (Sharjah) household blue and green bin programme; Dubai Municipality on the phases of the single-use plastic ban and on cooking oil; Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Resolution No. 380 of 2022; Dubai Health Authority on returning medicine; Gulf News guides to recycling in the UAE. Rules differ by emirate and building and can change, so check with your local waste service. The game is a simplified guide.