Non-hazardous micropipette tips can be collected for recycling. Collect in a puncture-proof container. BL1 and BL2 tips must be decontaminated with bleach or alcohol before being deposited into a recycling bin. Pharmaceutical contamination would also prevent the recycling of tips.

Always check with the environmental, health, and safety office at your institution first.  Sometimes finding a pipette tip inside a recycling collection container will automatically make everything considered "trash".  Your institution's recycling program rules will be dependent on EPA, OSHA, local hazardous waste regulations, and the municipal recycling services that are available.

Once you have a pipette tip recycling system cleared to start, it’s easy!

UPDATE: Recycling pipette tips became challenging in 2018 due to the huge drop in the value of plastic collections. The good news is that there are still environmentally friendly solutions for labs! 

• GreenLabs Recycling collects pipette tip boxes.

• Polycarbin offers closed-loop lab plastics including a mail-back service or on-site service.

• Genova offers a machine to reprocess pipette tips. Learn more in our interview; The Secret Technology that Allows Labs to Reuse Plastic Pipette Tips

• View more options for lab recycling in our resources section.