(KXNET) — Easter is now over, and for parents, that means cleaning up a festive mess around the house composed of leftover baskets, candy wrappers, and plastic eggs. While we’re all eager to get rid of it, it’s important to keep a couple of things in mind when disposing of your easter trash.

The North Dakota Recycling and Sanitation Plant does not accept plastic egg casings, so don’t throw them away in your recycling bin.

Plastic Easter eggs are small, which means they could hinder the process of recycling facilities by getting caught in machinery or being filtered out completely.

Similar to clear plastic wrapping for chocolate chips and food items, the plastic in these egg casings gets tainted and becomes unrecyclable. Experts say the best way to be environmentally friendly during this time of year is to store plastic eggs rather than recycle them, and if possible, reuse them next year.