How does trash get recycled

A transfer station is a location that accepts trash, and frequently recyclables and other materials, before transferring them off to their final destination. This is done in part so that the heavy trucks that do the collection do not have to drive all the way to a waste's final destination.

Nothing stays at the transfer station permanently; everything is transferred out using big rig trucks. The County operates four transfer stations, which you can read more about on the County's Public Works website. Trash from all these locations gets transferred to a landfill. The principal behind modern sanitary landfills is to bury trash in the most contained way possible. Trash is delivered by trucks to what is called the "open cell".

This is the only part of the landfill that has trash visible at the surface. After being delivered, the trash is driven over by heavy machines called compactors. A lot of materials contain air, and the compactors squeeze out as much air as possible. After the cell is full, it is covered permanently with a layer of material, usually dirt or something similar. At that point there is a new cell opened until it is filled. Modern landfills are lined with material to keep contaminants inside the landfill from leaking out.

They also have landfill gas collectors to capture most of the methane that the materials inside of the landfill make. Related Topics: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

Contact Us. On this page: Benefits of Recycling Steps to Recycling Materials Recycling Creates Jobs Benefits of Recycling Reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators Conserves natural resources such as timber, water and minerals Increases economic security by tapping a domestic source of materials Prevents pollution by reducing the need to collect new raw materials Saves energy Supports American manufacturing and conserves valuable resources Helps create jobs in the recycling and manufacturing industries in the United States Steps to Recycling Materials Recycling includes the three steps below, which create a continuous loop, represented by the familiar recycling symbol.

Step 1: Collection and Processing There are several methods for collecting recyclables, including curbside collection, drop-off centers, and deposit or refund programs. Common Recyclables After collection, recyclables are sent to a recovery facility to be sorted, cleaned and processed into materials that can be used in manufacturing.

Step 2: Manufacturing More and more of today's products are being manufactured with recycled content. Common household items that contain recycled materials include the following: Newspapers and paper towels Aluminum, plastic, and glass soft drink containers Steel cans Plastic laundry detergent bottles Recycled materials are also used in new ways such as recovered glass in asphalt to pave roads or recovered plastic in carpeting and park benches.

Step 3: Purchasing New Products Made from Recycled Materials You help close the recycling loop by buying new products made from recycled materials.

When you go shopping, look for the following: Products that can be easily recycled Products that contain recycled content Below are some of the terms used: Recycled-content product - The product was manufactured with recycled materials either collected from a recycling program or from waste recovered during the normal manufacturing process.

The label will sometimes include how much of the content was from recycled materials. Post-consumer content - Very similar to recycled content, but the material comes only from recyclables collected from consumers or businesses through a recycling program. Recyclable product - Products that can be collected, processed and manufactured into new products after they have been used.

These products do not necessarily contain recycled materials. In fact, the percentage of recycling that actually gets recycled is both surprising and, quite frankly, disconcerting. According to the EPA , Americans generate more than million tons of solid waste every year.

In , only That's only about 35 percent of the total amount, and when you take into account that only 8 percent of discarded plastics were recycled that year, things start to look more unsettling. The sad reality is that not every piece of recycling that gets thrown into the bin gets recycled. There are many reasons for this, though most have to do with the flaws in the actual process itself. These flaws include everything from lack of return on investment to improper handling.

The global pandemic and several other factors have seen things taking a turn for the worse in that regard. Much of the plastic recycling in the U. Plastic, metal, glass, and paper are the most common types of recyclable materials, but as you will see below, they all recycle differently and with varying degrees of success. As a result, the actual recycling percentages of each also tend to be quite different.