I rarely use a local story for my Friday Feature because, truth be told, I rarely read the local paper. But yesterday, I picked up our newspaper and the above-the-fold headline caught my eye.

Production plant that converts hard-to-recycle plastic waste to open in York.

This was news.

Over time I, like so many others, have watched the list of things we can truly recycle get smaller and smaller. First, we lost our office paper avenue. Then it was hard-to-recycle plastics (think food containers) until finally the motto became, "When in doubt, throw it out."

Definitely moving in the wrong direction.

I watched Plastic Wars on PBS and wanted to cry. I decreased my personal paper and plastic usage, bought a reusable water bottle I actually like (thank you, Starbucks, of all places) and thought more carefully than ever about whether or not I really wanted to buy things wrapped in plastic. Still, when pandemic isolation made ordering food and housewares more the norm than the exception, I had little control over the packaging that was used. I saved as much as I could to reuse and took note of the companies that used brown paper inside their boxes (I saved that and reused it as well).

Still, there was "when in doubt, throw it out" which, while easier, gave me a little stab of guilt every time.

So, you can imagine my joy when I discovered that much of what had been ending up in my trash can might soon end up back in my recycling bin. This time, it won't be destined for China or our oceans, but for a plant that can turn it into something useful.

I have no intention of changing my reusing and recycling habits any time soon. But now I look forward to the day when I can go back to recycling things had become end-of-the-line waste, destined to clog landfills and bodies of water.

Funny how one local headline can carry so much hope for a less polluted future.