WM’s nearly 100,000-square-foot facility in Cleveland. | Courtesy of WM
WM’s latest tech-heavy recycling facility is up and running in Ohio, with the capacity to process up to 420 tons of recyclables daily.
The almost 100,000-square-foot facility has glass recovery equipment, optical sorters, non-wrapping screens and ballistic separators.
Aaron Johnson, WM Great Lakes area vice president, said in a press release that the investment reinforces “our commitment to the environment and our ability to provide a local solution for cutting-edge single stream recycling in [Northeast] Ohio.”
Beth Biggins-Ramer, Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District executive director, added that the facility “will increase recycling capacity within the county and the region and assist in furthering local sustainability efforts.”
The project is part of WM’s larger goal of investing over $1 billion in recycling infrastructure by 2026. That includes about 40 planned new or automated recycling facilities that will add 2.8 million tons of capacity.
“With the demand for recycled content products expected to rise, the investments are expected to enable WM to capture more recycled materials and increase access to recycling for its customers,” the press release noted.
That includes traditional recycling materials and difficult-to-recycle materials such as film plastic, the press release added. The upgrades will also help WM manage and reduce contamination.