Trash sorting is a big deal in McMurdo. Napkins get separated from office paper and put in 'Paper Towels', unless the napkins are contaminated with food, in which case they go with 'Food Waste', which is shipped back to the US under refrigeration. Thick metal is isolated from light metal, but small metal bits go in 'Small Metal Bits'. Band-aids or razors go in the 'Sani-waste', but dental floss goes in 'Non-Recyclables'.
It's common to find oneself in front of a bank of trash bins, unable to throw out an item because it just doesn't belong in any of the available trash or recycling categories. The result: you're carrying trash in your pockets, waiting to spot the proper bin. When our dorm room trash bin fills up, one of us is going to have to carry it outside, dig through a week of accumulated garbage and sort our bottle caps ('Non-recyclable') from our candy wrappers ('Plastics', if free from food residue). If you start to feel bad for yourself, leave your dignity in the black bin and get on with the trash sorting.
