Why Recycle?
Environmental Benefits
Recycling provides many benefits to our environment. By recycling our materials, we create a healthier planet for ourselves and future generations.
Conserve natural resources: Recycling reduces the need to extract resources such as timber, water, and minerals for new products.
Energy savings: Recycling conserves energy. For example, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that manufacturing using recycled aluminum uses 95% less energy than extracting new aluminum.
Waste and pollution reduction: Recycling diverts waste away from landfills. This reduces the harmful effects of pollution and emissions as well as extends the life of our landfills and reduces the need to use more land for waste.
Economic Benefits
Supports local manufacturing: Recycled materials are used by end users close to home, which helps our local economy. 100% of your recyclables stay in America and over 70% stay in Ohio. Learn more about end users and the circular economy.
Job Creation: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2020 Recycling Economic Information (REI) Study found that 1.17 jobs are created per 1,000 tons of materials recycled.
Economic Security: Manufactures using recycled materials means not having to rely on imported resources because your recycling stays in the Unites States.
Recycling Process
Your recycling hauler picks up your recycling to be taken to the recycling facility.
All recycling haulers in Greene County first take the recyclables to Rumpke's Dayton Material Recovery Facility (MRF). By all going to the same place, Greene County has the same recycling rules no matter the hauler. At the facility, the recyclables travel through various conveyor belts and sorting machines where they are sorted according to type. The Dayton facility is primarily to remove cardboard, paper, and glass.
After going through the Dayton facility, the remaining recyclables are sent to Rumpke's Cincinnati MRF to be sorted again. The Cincinnati facility is the 4th largest and technologically advanced recycling facility in North America, and can finish sorting all the recyclables.
The sorting process begins with trommels and ballistics to separate paper from containers.
Eddy currents and electromagnets are used to remove aluminum and steel cans from the mix of recyclables.
Optical scanners remove cartons and plastics. These scanners have infrared light that senses the materials and removes them from conveyor belts with a shot of air.
Sorting glass requires the use of finger screens, vibratory screens, magnets, as well as optical scanners.
After separating out each of the materials, recyclables are compacted into bales. The bales are then sold to manufacturers. These manufacturers use the recycled material to create new products. New products will be sold to retailers, who eventually make them available to you. All your recycling comes back to you! Learn more about end users and the circular economy here.