Clackamas County, Ore. was one of a number of case studies used to illustrate the data in SWANA’s report. | Clackamas Sustainability & Solid Waste Program/SWANA Report
Leaving “oops” tags on contaminated recycling carts and providing positive feedback to those with clean carts is one of the most effective ways to reduce contamination, though it can be pricey, according to a new report.
Olympia, Wash. is one of many communities implementing recycling contamination checks at the curb. | Courtesy of city of Olympia
Facing ever-increasing pressure to deliver a cleaner stream to processors, cities across North America are turning to curbside inspection of residential carts. Many are seeing positive results from the efforts.
A fire at Tulsa’s MRF is the latest example of the industry trend of fires caused by improperly disposed batteries and electronics. | BlurAZ/Shutterstock
The city of Tulsa, Okla. was forced to redirect its residential recycling stream to a waste-to-energy plant after an improperly discarded battery sparked a blaze at a local MRF.
The report from SWANA delves into how poor recycling behaviors develop and why they persist. | Scott Beck / Resource Recycling Inc.
Education campaigns may improve curbside recycling practices for residents who produce average or low amounts of contamination, but they may not impact the worst offenders, according to new research.
A judge has ruled that the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA) must pay $1.1 million in damages to a subsidiary of Republic Services. | BCFC/Shutterstock
A Connecticut judge last month ordered a public authority to pay Republic Services damages in a MRF operations contract dispute. Soon after, the saga took another turn, with Republic indicating it’s set to bow out of the agreement altogether.
MRFs in Florida have historically landfilled about one-quarter of the weight that comes in the door, according to a study commissioned by the Florida Recycling Partnership Foundation.
For those of us working in the recycling industry, improving quality has become a priority. The question is: How do we clean up the recycling stream and do it cost-effectively and quickly?
Researchers in Florida have noticed a gradual increase in contamination rates in recent years. | Blueee77/Shutterstock
MRFs in Florida have historically landfilled about one-quarter of the weight that comes in the door, according to a study commissioned by the Florida Recycling Partnership Foundation.
A research project in Ontario compared single-family and multi-family streams in medium-sized urban cities with single-family streams in rural programs. | Diana Parkhouse/Shutterstock
Officials in one area of Ontario dove deep into recycling stream composition data, producing results that informed a municipality’s new recycling contract. Continue Reading
