Startup Ridwell Tries to Recycle Difficult Plastics

But critics say the boutique waste hauler is not accomplishing anything environmentally useful.

Feb. 21, 2026 at 11:00am

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Ridwell, a Seattle-based waste service, offers to collect and recycle items that are not accepted by regular curbside recycling, such as plastic bags, polystyrene, and other hard-to-recycle materials. The company sorts and distributes the waste to specialty recyclers, manufacturers, and thrift shops. However, critics argue that Ridwell is not actually solving the problem and is misleading consumers about the recyclability of these materials.

Why it matters

The rise of boutique recycling services like Ridwell highlights the limitations of traditional curbside recycling and the challenges of dealing with complex plastic waste. While Ridwell aims to divert materials from landfills, critics argue that the company's reliance on plastic bags and long-distance transportation undermines its environmental benefits.

The details

Ridwell provides customers with canvas bags to sort their waste, including items like plastic bags, light bulbs, and batteries. The company then collects the bags every two weeks and transports the materials to a warehouse where they are sorted and distributed to specialty recyclers, manufacturers, and thrift stores. However, some of the materials, such as multilayer plastic bags, are still difficult to recycle, and the transportation costs can be high. Critics argue that Ridwell is providing a false sense of environmental responsibility and that the responsibility for recycling should lie with the manufacturers of plastic packaging.

  • Ridwell was founded by Ryan Metzger and his son, who were frustrated that their local waste hauler did not accept many items for recycling.
  • Ridwell has since expanded to serve customers in several cities across the United States, including Vancouver, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Austin, Minneapolis, and Atlanta.

The players

Ridwell

A Seattle-based waste service that offers to collect and recycle items that are not accepted by regular curbside recycling.

Gerrine Pan

The vice president of partnerships at Ridwell.

Ed Greiser

The owner of Hydroblox, a company that melts multilayer plastic films into hard, plastic bricks for use in landscaping and road construction.

Nick Lapis

The director of advocacy for Californians Against Waste, a group that criticizes boutique recycling services like Ridwell.

Ryan Metzger

The chief executive of Ridwell.

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What they’re saying

“Sorting is our special sauce. Part of the reason the company is successful at finding markets — or buyers — for its waste, she said, is that it's sorted and pretty clean (unlike the food-contaminated jumble of waste that gets stuffed in many blue bins).”

— Gerrine Pan, Vice President of Partnerships, Ridwell

“This article is going to be a nightmare for me. I'm not the solution.”

— Ed Greiser, Owner, Hydroblox

“There is typically a reason why a given product isn't being recycled through curbside collection, and it usually isn't for lack of effort by cities and counties. Most of the material being collected by boutique collection services like Ridwell are either very difficult to manage or lack strong recycling markets.”

— Nick Lapis, Director of Advocacy, Californians Against Waste

“We're careful not to present plastic recycling as a cure-all, and it turns away some materials, for example vinyl shower curtains, 'because we don't have a downstream partner we can stand behind.”

— Ryan Metzger, Chief Executive, Ridwell

What’s next

Ridwell plans to continue expanding its service to more cities across the United States, but it remains to be seen whether the company can address the concerns raised by critics about the environmental impact of its operations.

The takeaway

The rise of boutique recycling services like Ridwell highlights the ongoing challenges of dealing with complex plastic waste and the need for more comprehensive solutions that address the root causes of plastic pollution, such as producer responsibility and improved curbside recycling programs.