MRF executives have noted staffing and procedural changes to deal with the coronavirus.
As the coronavirus continues to spread, recycling facilities are increasing distance between employees, sanitizing common areas and, in at least one case, halting the practice of punching in and out on a time clock.
With material buyers today paying less for recyclables but demanding higher quality, some recycling companies have cut back or closed.
Peoria Disposal Company (PDC), however, has rolled with the punches – and hit back with a multi-million-dollar upgrade to its Pekin, Ill. materials recovery facility.
Portland, Maine-based Ecomaine runs a 50,000-square-foot MRF, as well as a waste-to-energy site and landfill. | Photo courtesy of Ecomaine/Credit: Brian Fitzgerald
Many recycling facilities track throughput, materials composition, contamination and other data points. One operator in the Northeast is now bringing meticulous measurement to social distancing.
Several weeks after suspending recycling programs, some city officials have reinstated service. | Sundry Photography/Shutterstock
A handful of municipalities have reinstated curbside recycling programs that were suspended due to the coronavirus. Still, dozens of others that curtailed service remain shut down.
Circulate Capital announced $6 million in funding to recycling companies to prevent marine debris. | Igor Batenev/Shutterstock
Circulate Capital invested $6 million in plastics recycling companies in India and Indonesia, the brand-backed firm’s first outlay designed to prevent marine plastics.
Figures show New York City saw an uptick in collected residential material in March compared with a year earlier. | Felix Lipov/Shutterstock
Recycling programs are reporting greater residential recycling generation in March, concurrent with stay-at-home orders issued nationwide. Stakeholders involved with local programs are also noting the shift away from commercial generation may carry major financial implications. Continue Reading
The $349 billion in initial funding for the Paycheck Protection Program ran out within two weeks. | NIKCOA/Shutterstock
Recycling companies across the country are applying to a federal assistance program to help them overcome cash-flow problems sparked by the coronavirus. Some have been successful, but others are running into banking complexities and tapped-out funding.
