Hauler contract: Long Beach, Calif. leaders voted to sign a new contract with the city’s existing garbage and recycling hauler, Waste Management, the Long Beach-based Press-Telegram reports.
Removing glass: Sioux City, Iowa is considering removing glass from its single-stream collection program because the local MRF operator no longer wants to receive the material, according to the Sioux City Journal. The city of 82,000 people will consider asking residents to keep glass out of carts and instead pursue a drop-off collection approach for bottles and jars.
Solar panel recycling: A report forecasts significant potential for solar panel recycling through 2050. Solar photovoltaic panels are often made up of glass, aluminum, copper, silicon and plastics. The report is from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the International Energy Agency’s Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (IEA-PVPS).
Truck technology: Waste and recycling trucks do a lot of braking, and an innovation unveiled by Mack uses braking energy to help charge a battery. Popular Science reports the electric hybrid truck uses a powertrain technology developed by the co-founder of Tesla Motors.
Scrap metals yard purchased: An Indiana county has purchased a scrap metals yard and plans to relocate its solid waste management facility there, according to American Metals Market (subscription required). Clark County purchased Charlestown Metals Recycling, which had been in operation for nine years but recently closed.
Single-stream switch: A South Dakota town will switch to single-stream recycling, KSFY.com reports. City commissioners in Yankton, population 15,000, voted to have staff budget and apply for grants for the switch and inform residents about the change.
Depot closing: Knox County, Ohio residents are slated to lose their recycling drop-off depot after 2016. Rumpke announced plans to close the drop-off center in Mount Vernon, a town of 17,000 people northeast of Columbus, according to the Mount Vernon News.