Is wrapping paper recyclable?  Even with tape attached? Which bin for cellophane? Wine corks? Tinsel?

Americans generate an extra 6 million tons of trash in the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, according to waste management officials.  The days of merely heaping it in the garbage can are over. 

But determining the correct bin for used holiday trappings can be confusing, so we asked Livermore Sanitation for guidance.

Livermore Sanitation community relations manager Sheila Fagliano offers a breakdown:

RECYCLE:

• Wrapping paper, even with tape attached. (Metallic or cellophane paper, however, is trash.)
• Tissue paper – if it is plain and white, recycle. (Foil or plasticized varieties are trash.)
• Paper gift bags. (Trash any with foil or plasticized portions.)
• Holiday cards. Primarily recyclable, but it gets tricky: Remove and trash any foil, plastic or photographs on photo-stock paper. (Fagliano suggests reusing the cards as gift tags.)
• Envelopes.
• Gift boxes.
• Postal or mailing boxes. (Leftover masking or packing tape is OK.)
• Inside tubes from gift-paper rolls.
• Cardboard backing from shrink-wrapped gifts, toys or electronics.  (The plastic portions are trash.)
• Wine and alcohol bottles.
• Aluminum foil – if it is clean. (If contaminated with food, it is trash.)
• Aluminum pie plates.
• Metal cookie tins.
• Empty, "waxy" eggnog cartons.

TRASH:

• Bows.
• Ribbons. 
• Empty tape dispensers. (First check for the recycle symbol. If that is present, put into recycling bin.)
• Foam packing "peanuts."  (Another option is to return to packaging store.)
• Cellophane and metallic wrapping paper.
• Artificial Christmas trees.
• Flocked Christmas trees. (Trees must be cut into sections to fit into trash carts.)
• Tinsel.
• Garland.
• Lights and cords. (Fagliano advises checking with local hardware stores, however, as some offer take-back programs.)
• Styrofoam cups and plates.
• Plastic cups.
• Plastic eating and serving utensils.
• Plastic tablecloths.
• Plastic food wrap.
• Plastic shrink-wrap portions of product packaging. (The cardboard backing to such products is recyclable.)
• Used candles.

GREEN WASTE:

• Wine corks. But only if they are real cork, Fagliano said. If the plastic variety, then trash.)
• Real evergreen swags and wreaths with wires and hooks removed.
• Real Christmas trees. (Tree pickup details are listed below.)
• Paper napkins.
• Paper plates and cups.
• Paper tablecloths. (Place in yard waste if it has food on it; if clean, place in recycling can. If plasticized in any way, it's trash.)
• Wax paper.
• Food scraps.
• Food-soiled paper products.
• Pointsettias or "live" plants. (Plastic flower pots and cellophane trimmings, however, are trash.)

Did Santa deliver new flat-screen televisions or laptops? Don't simply trash the old ones; they are not allowed in landfills, Fagliano said.

Household electronics such as TVs, computers, cell phones and monitors are called "E-waste" and can be disposed of at the e-cycle Electronic Waste Recycling facility at 2127 Research Drive. Fees may apply. The facility's website, www.stopwaste.org, offers details.

Livermore Sanitation offers a pick-up, fee-based service for e-waste, as well, Fagliano said.  Customers must call to schedule pickups. Information can be found at its website. 

Livermore Sanitation offers curbside tree pickup for single-family residences for the first two weeks of January, Fagliano said. Trees, free of stands, decorations, tinsel or flocking should be placed at the curb on regular collection days, she said.

If those dates are missed, trees must be cut into sections to fit into organics carts with lids closed, she said.

Livermore Sanitation's website offers public-education information, with a photo guide, for further help with trash, recycling and organics disposal, Fagliano said.