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ESCANABA -- Virtually all types of metal can be recycled and reused for other items.  That means there's very little need to figure out what should go for recycling.

In fact, almost no metal is disposed of in a landfill.

However, officials at the Delta County Landfill and Recycling Facility have noticed that less metals have been coming in for recycling.

Last year, Delta-wide recycling brought in 243 tons of metal, which is down from 2006.  That may be due to the rising cost of metal and more people taking it directly to a scrapyard for cash.

For those who do still take advantage of the facility, preparing your items in Delta County for drop off is very simple.

"If you have tin cans, you don't need to take the labels off or anything," stated Don Pyle of Delta County Landfill. "We would recommend for everybody's safety, if you cut the lid out of a can, you put it inside and crush the can, so that the lid cannot come out and hurt someone."

They do ask that all items be cleaned up before sending them along, as it is more pleasant for the workers to handle.

Once they receive the metal, it is bundled and taken for processing.  If you have larger items, there's no need to strip them apart first, but you may have to drop them off at the plant in person, rather than have curbside pickup.

Be sure to check with your local facilities about guidelines for drop off.