PlanetBlue Visit to the A2 MRF

Check out the City of Ann Arbor's 5 minute video on how single stream recycling works:

Single Stream Recycling

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On Friday June 28, a bus full of Planet Blue Ambassadors took a trip to the Materials Recovery Facility  (MRF) out near Platt & Ellsworth.

Looks like the sign had an accident.

 This is where all the sorting of recyclable materials happens, both for the City and for the UM.

The MRF building entrance.

After an orientation, we went in 2 groups for an inside tour after donning safety gear.

One of the things they told us was that they really don't want you to recycle small plastic lids or grocery bags.  The lids tend to get sorted as paper, and the bags tend to gum up the works of the conveyors - as sort of illustrated below.

Bag caught in the machinery.

Here is where the trucks dump the mixed recycles.

These doors stay open all year, whatever the weather!

Here is where the sorted recycles get bailed in preparation for shipping to the factories that use them.

The bailing machine is on the right.

The education center had some useful ways of getting the message across to school kids.

The most important thing we learned was to NOT recycle lids or grocery bags.  Who knew?

-t