The TotalRecycle MRF saw a 70% contamination reduction in its mixed paper and old newsprint bales from installing the flexible packaging sortation equipment. | Jared Paben/Resource Recycling, Inc.
A multi-stakeholder project was able to hit some goals separating flexible plastic packaging from other recyclables at a MRF. But backers also reported significant hurdles moving material downstream cost-effectively.
Researchers collected and sorted through more than 38,000 pounds of mixed recyclables from 173 sample loads. | Rubens Alarcon/Shutterstock
Researchers have quantified contamination in the business recycling stream in the Portland, Ore. metropolitan area, providing data that can be used to make operational or outreach decisions.
On June 1, a statewide survey will launch to collect information about recycling and manufacturers’ use of recovered materials in Texas. | Trong Nguyen/Shutterstock
Recycling stakeholders in the Lone Star State are preparing a plan that will point lawmakers toward strategies for boosting recycling.
California cities of 50,000 residents or more are seeing inbound contamination rates between 8% and 46%, with an average of 20%. | Oksana Shturo/Shutterstock
According to a study from The Recycling Partnership, large and mid-sized cities in California see an average contamination rate of around 20%, a finding that underscores the complications of aligning enthusiastic residents with local-program realities.
A recent Greenpeace report noted companies are increasingly calling a wider variety of products “recyclable.” | Marko Rupena/Shutterstock
Several recycling industry reports were recently released, including a Greenpeace indictment of recyclability labeling, the latest updates from Closed Loop Partners, and one state’s investigation of food waste in public schools.
PET collection is lagging behind recycled resin demand by more than 1 billion pounds per year, according to a new study. | Resource Recycling file photo.
The current recycling system is insufficient, according to a report from The Recycling Partnership. But several key initiatives – and $500 million – can move the industry forward.
A comprehensive industry study has put a dollar amount on what U.S. materials recovery facilities and their municipal partners are spending to move recovered glass downstream.
A survey of over a dozen Northeast MRFs showed a decrease in the value of a ton of recyclables in the third quarter. | Benjamin Clapp/Shutterstock
The blended value of a ton of recyclables in the Northeast U.S. has dropped by about one-fifth, a MRF survey shows.
For this study Oregon researchers focused on the problem of people discarding their once-edible food. | Alina Rosanova/Shutterstock
Various recycling-related research projects will receive grant funding from the REMADE Institute. | NicoElNino/Shutterstock
This article has been corrected.
A number of recycling companies and industry associations are involved in research projects that recently received federal funding.