is a cereal box made of paper or cardboard as far as which recycling bin to put it in?

Answer 1

Around here, Tucson, AZ, they only want you to put corrugated cardboard in the recycle bin.
Cardboard with a glossy label or surface is actually a combination of things which is much more costly to separate.

Answer 2

In the UK it depends on which Council collects your waste and what sort of contract they've got with the paper companies. Our Council takes newspapers and magazines (not glossy ones) in one bag and co-mingled cardboard (including loo rolls) with other printed paper, glossy mags, telephone directories, junk-mail etc in another bag. This is all due to the processes that the re-cycling company uses to separate the waste and should be clearly laid out in the literature you get from your Council. The problem about just throwing it all in together (and the same is true for different coloured glass) is that newspapers would contaminate the other paper waste, and vice-versa. This would mean a lower quality product for the re-cycling company who will then reduce the rate they pay the Council - which in turn will incease your Council Tax!! Quite simply, it's up to everybody to "source-separate" their waste (at home where it's relatively easy & clean) rather than chuck it all in together & let someone else get on with it. The Council should advise which things can be mixed together (cans/tins/plastic etc) depending on the methods of mechanical separation that are to be used - it's all a balance between cost of collection & ease of separation at the end.

Answer 3

cardboard