Skär inte upp den där plasten nu; vi kan återvinna plasten imorgon, och burken kan också följa med.

Because skära upp is a phrasal/separable verb in Swedish. It means something like cut open, slice up, or cut apart, depending on context.

• skära = to cut
• skära upp = to cut open / cut up

In main clauses, Swedish often splits this kind of verb:

• Skär inte upp plasten. = Don’t cut up the plastic.

But in some other structures, it can stay together:

• att skära upp plasten = to cut up the plastic

So skär is the main verb, and upp is a particle that changes the meaning.

Because this is an imperative, a command.

In Swedish negative commands, inte usually comes after the imperative verb:

• Gå inte dit. = Don’t go there.
• Öppna inte dörren. = Don’t open the door.
• Skär inte upp den där plasten. = Don’t cut up that plastic.

So the pattern is:

imperative verb + inte + rest

That is normal Swedish word order for negative commands.

den där means that, usually with a sense of that one there or that particular one.

So:

• den där plasten = that plastic / that bit of plastic there

It often points to something specific in the situation, sometimes physically visible, sometimes just already known in the conversation.

Compare:

• plasten = the plastic
• den där plasten = that plastic, often more pointed or specific

It can sometimes sound slightly distancing, like that plastic there, but not necessarily rude.

Because Swedish usually uses the definite form after den/det/de + adjective/demonstrative.

The noun becomes definite:

• plasten = the plastic
• den där plasten = that plastic

This is part of a common Swedish pattern sometimes called double definiteness:

• den röda bilen = the red car
• det stora huset = the big house
• den där plasten = that plastic

Even though English only marks definiteness once, Swedish often marks it both with den/det/de and with the definite ending on the noun.

Because the speaker is talking about a specific plastic item or piece of plastic already identified in the conversation or situation.

Swedish often uses the definite form where English might sometimes be less explicit. Here, plasten does not mean plastic in general as a material. It means the plastic we’re talking about.

So:

• återvinna plast could mean recycle plastic in a general sense
• återvinna plasten means recycle the plastic, meaning that specific plastic

The sentence first identifies it as den där plasten, and then later refers back to it simply as plasten.

Here it most likely means the plastic item / plastic packaging / piece of plastic, not plastic as a material in the abstract.

Swedish can use material words in a very practical way:

• glaset = the glass / the glass item
• pappret = the paper / the paper item
• plasten = the plastic / the plastic item

In everyday speech, especially around sorting waste or recycling, plasten often means the plastic packaging or plastic piece someone is holding.

nu means now, and its placement here is natural because it modifies the whole command:

• Skär inte upp den där plasten nu.
• Don’t cut up that plastic now.

Swedish adverbs like nu can move around somewhat, but not freely in every position. This placement sounds very natural and conversational.

It gives the sense:

• not now
• don’t do that at this moment

If you moved nu, the emphasis could change slightly, but the given version is a very normal way to say it.

Yes. återvinna means to recycle.

• åter- = again / back
• vinna historically means gain / recover / win

So the literal idea is something like recover for reuse, but in normal modern Swedish it simply means recycle.

Examples:

• Vi återvinner glas. = We recycle glass.
• Kan man återvinna den här burken? = Can this can/jar be recycled?

In your sentence:

• vi kan återvinna plasten imorgon
• we can recycle the plastic tomorrow

Because Swedish main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb comes in the second position.

Here:

• vi = subject
• kan = finite verb
• återvinna = infinitive
• plasten = object
• imorgon = time expression

So the normal order is: Subject + finite verb + infinitive + object + time

That gives:

• Vi kan återvinna plasten imorgon.

You cannot say vi återvinna kan plasten in standard Swedish.

Because också is an adverb, and in a clause with a modal verb like kan, it usually goes after the finite verb and before the main infinitive.

Pattern:

• subject + finite verb + adverb + infinitive

So:

• burken kan också följa med

Compare:

• Hon kan också komma. = She can also come.
• Vi måste också gå. = We also have to go.

This is very normal Swedish word order.

Right — not literally.

följa med is a very common expression with several meanings, such as:

• come along
• go along
• be included
• come with

In this sentence, burken kan också följa med means something like:

• the can/jar can go too
• the can/jar can come along as well
• the can/jar can be taken along too

In context, it probably means the can/jar can also be taken for recycling or disposal together with the plastic.

So it is an idiomatic expression, not a literal idea of physically following.

burk is a flexible word in Swedish. It can mean:

• can
• jar
• tin
• container

The exact translation depends on context.

For example:

• en konservburk = a tin/can of food
• en glasburk = a glass jar
• en burk läsk can refer to a can of soda

So in your sentence, burken means the can/jar/container, whichever fits the situation. Swedish burk is broader than any single English word.

It is singular because the speaker is referring to one specific can/jar/container.

• burken = the can/jar
• burkarna = the cans/jars

If there were several, the sentence might be:

• ... och burkarna kan också följa med.
• ... and the cans/jars can come along too.

So the singular simply reflects the situation: apparently there is one specific burk being discussed.

The semicolon links two closely related independent clauses:

1. Skär inte upp den där plasten nu
2. vi kan återvinna plasten imorgon, och burken kan också följa med

It is stronger than a comma but not as separate as a full stop. In English, it works similarly.

The idea is:

• first, a command: don’t cut it up now
• then, an explanation/reason: we can recycle it tomorrow, and the can/jar can go too

In everyday writing, many people might also use a full stop or sometimes a comma, but the semicolon is perfectly understandable here.

Yes, but the meaning would change.

• den här plasten = this plastic
• den där plasten = that plastic

So the difference is the same basic distinction as English this versus that.

In real usage, it can also suggest psychological distance:

• den här = closer to me / more immediate
• den där = farther away / that one there / that particular one

So the sentence would still work with den här plasten, but it would point to a different item or a different perspective.

It sounds like normal, natural everyday Swedish.

Nothing in it is especially formal. It is the kind of sentence you might hear at home while sorting rubbish or packaging:

• Don’t cut that plastic up now; we can recycle it tomorrow, and the can can go too.

Features that make it feel natural and conversational include:

• the imperative Skär inte upp ...
• the demonstrative den där
• the practical expression följa med
• simple everyday recycling vocabulary like plasten and burken

So this is very useful real-life Swedish, not textbook-only language.