According to 50 Top Pizza, NYC is the #1 best US city for pizza addicts–I mean, duh. It’s a title we wear with pride. We are, after all, home to the best pizzeria in the US.
And Central Park is now tackling the ultimate New York problem–recycling pizza boxes.
As first reported by NY1, the Central Park Conservancy recently unveiled new recycling bins that, hilariously, are specifically designed to hold pizza boxes!
Since pizza boxes don’t really fit in any of the park’s garbage cans, the new recycling bins were introduced in an effort to tackle the stack of boxes that pile up following the many picnics and parties New Yorkers hold in Central Park. Additionally, the bins will help keep the boxes from ending up in the landfill.
According to NY1, Jonathan Vasquez, a groundskeeper for the Central Park Conservancy, stated:
People stack them in the pathways, or bend the box and stuff it in the trash bins, which leads to overflowing cans, which also attracts rodents.
The pizza box recycling bins are part of a pilot project and they’re currently located at the East Pinetum, north of the Great Lawn, which happens to be a popular spot for picnics and parties. Each bin can hold up to 50 pizza boxes, and Conservancy staff will check each bin two to three times a day.
The correct way to use them: take all the pizza box contents out–whether that be wax paper or leftover slices–throw those contents in the trash, and then place the closed, empty box in the pizza box recycling bins.
If the pilot program is a success, more could potentially be introduced at additional popular picnic spots.