Materials recovery facilities opened recently in two U.S. regions. | Juice Flair/Shutterstock
Recycling facilities in Iowa and New Jersey recently started up operations, processing single-stream recyclables from nearby communities.
Waste Management announced plans for another $200 million in recycling investments for 2022. | BCFC/Shutterstock
Driven by labor market difficulties, Waste Management is accelerating its plans to upgrade MRFs so they can operate more profitably and with a smaller headcount, the company’s CEO said.
Now operational, the Recycle Ann Arbor MRF accepts typical single-stream recyclables, including mixed paper, OCC, cartons, metal cans, glass, PET, HDPE and PP. | Courtesy of Recycle Ann Arbor
Recycle Ann Arbor reopened the city of Ann Arbor’s MRF this month, marking the first time in years that recyclables will be sorted locally in the Michigan municipality.
California regulators will provide incentive payments to curbside recycling programs producing PET bales with less than 2% contamination. | RecycleMan/Shutterstock
California officials will provide payments of up to $180 per ton to recycling facilities that limit contamination in PET bales to 2% or less.
The Sims Sunset Park MRF in Brooklyn, N.Y., as seen on Google Earth.
In acquiring a majority stake in Sims Municipal Recycling, an industry investment group is assuming the reins of a company that grew profitability by 150% last year as commodity prices rose.
The Closed Loop Local Recycling Fund will help finance facilities that are modular and much smaller than a traditional facility, with a cost between $1 million and $2 million. | Courtesy of Revolution Recycling at Twin, Steamboat Springs, CO
A $35 million investment from PepsiCo Beverages North America will help Closed Loop Partners reach more people living in recycling deserts.
AMP Robotics is training its AI-powered visioning system to identify hazards such as fuel tanks and batteries so MRFs can safely remove them. | Courtesy of AMP Robotics
AMP Robotics is training its AI-powered camera system to identify fuel tanks and batteries on conveyor belts, so the system can alert MRF staff to the hazards.
The details of what’s being called the “Houston Recycling Collaboration” have yet to be worked out, but an agreement has set the process in motion to divert residential plastic scrap for chemical recycling. | Roschetzky Photography/Shutterstock
The city of Houston and its MRF operator, FCC Environmental Services, are among the signatories to an agreement to advance chemical recycling for household plastic scrap in the city.
Research compared a variety of deposit systems and recycling rates increased in all scenarios, with the highest rates for an all-beverage deposit of 10 cents. | Rokas Tenys/Shutterstock
This story has been corrected.
Though container deposit systems typically help lift recovery rates for covered materials, the programs also usually reduce tonnages of high-quality PET and aluminum going to sorting facilities. A new study helps to quantify those potential impacts.