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Tag Archives: MRFs

Robotics firm estimates tons lost at the MRF level

Published: April 23, 2024
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Aluminum cans for recycling.

EverestLabs’s data suggests that 3.6 million tons of aluminum, PET, HDPE and PP are collected and sent to MRFs each year, but about 960,000 of those tons end up in the disposal stream. | Graham Corney/Shutterstock

Of the aluminum cans, PET, HDPE and PP that reach a MRF, 27% ends up still going to disposal, according to a recent report from Robotics supplier EverestLabs. Continue Reading

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Panelists: AI has a bigger role to play in recycling

Published: April 9, 2024
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Panelist Rebecca Hu said during the session that AI is moving beyond robotics and the technology is on track to provide data and create partnerships that could improve the whole value chain. | Big Wave Productions/Resource Recycling

Artificial intelligence is a key element of increasing plastic recycling, panelists at the 2024 Plastics Recycling Conference in Grapevine, Texas, said last month. Continue Reading

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Survey: Residents expect glass recycling option

Published: April 2, 2024
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Glass bottles collected for recycling.

In the latest edition of the annual survey, 58% of respondents were from the public sector, 12% were glass manufacturers, and 10% were MRFs. | Michael Warwick/Shutterstock

The vast majority of residents expect to be able to recycle glass, and concern about glass recycling programs has fallen sharply, the Glass Recycling Coalition’s 2023 Glass Recycling Survey found. Continue Reading

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Oregon approves first set of EPR rules

Published: December 1, 2023
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Oregon state capitol building with state flag and blue sky.

The newly instated rules cover end markets, performance standards and several other key issues. | Grindstone-Media-Group/Shutterstock

Of the states that have passed extended producer responsibility laws for packaging, Oregon just became the first to approve a round of administrative rulemaking. 

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Why Glacier’s MRF robots drew millions in funding

Published: March 12, 2024
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Robotics from Glacier can be made to fit any belt width and can target more than 30 distinct materials. | Courtesy of Glacier

The co-founders of emerging sortation robotics supplier Glacier say their robots provide an immediate quality benefit with a small footprint: They can be placed anywhere a manual sorter would be stationed. Continue Reading

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MRF battery fires burn ‘really fast’ and ‘really hot’

Published: March 5, 2024
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Vinod Singh of Far West Recycling speaks during an Association of Oregon Recyclers presentation on recycling facility battery fires in February. | Dan Holtmeyer/Resource Recycling

At a Portland, Oregon-area transfer station, site superintendent Matt Tracy has noticed smaller lithium-ion batteries often behave like fireworks when they go into thermal runaway: They move erratically and can even become projectiles. Continue Reading

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Details on Oregon’s $150M trash-sorting MRF

Published: February 6, 2024
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The $150 million price tag on the new Lane County, Oregon, facility will be footed by Bulk Handling Systems and the county. | Courtesy of Bulk Handling Systems

An upcoming facility in Lane County, Oregon, will process mixed waste, commingled recyclables and organics and is projected to boost the county’s diversion rate by as much as 20 percentage points. Continue Reading

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Recology upgrades MRF serving Northern California

Published: January 29, 2024
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Recology’s newest MRF in California has seven optical sorters, an eddy current separator, drum magnet and 109 conveyor belts. | Courtesy of Recology

A $35 million materials recovery facility that opened this week in Sonoma County promises to more than double the processing capacity of the sorting center it is replacing. Continue Reading

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