Recycling Guide

From your curb to the Material Recovery Facility

Tipping FloorLoads of recyclables entering the plant are emptied in the tipping fl oor and placed according to the type of source. From here, recyclables are loaded onto the Residential Feed Conveyor, Fibre Feed Conveyor, or, in the case of presorted commercial sources, directly loaded onto the Fibre Baler Feed Conveyor. Material that is loaded onto the Residential Feed Conveyor passes through a metering drum which feeds the material into the presort booth more evenly and consistently, layering light and heavy materials at the outset.

Residential Presort Area (200)Film plastic, cardboard, scrap steel, and garbage are sorted into different bunkers at this point. Bags that are still sealed are sent to the Bag Breaker before returning to the Residential Presort Area. Materials exit this booth by way of an incline conveyor system and into the Triple Deck Screen.

Triple Deck ScreenThe Triple Deck Screen automatically separates mixed paper products from containers, including mixed broken glass, metal and plastic containers.

Optical Fibre Sorting SystemThe Optical Fibre Sorting System automatically separates OCC (old corrugated containers) and non-paper items (i.e. plastic fi lm) from ONP (old newspapers and fi ne paper). The material is fed in a single-layer manner onto a high speed acceleration conveyor. The machine analyzes all passing items and classifi es ONP, non-paper items and OCC according to their specifi c color. The master computer controls a compressed air pulse and shoots fi ne paper upwards and cardboard items downward.

ONP Quality Control (504)Any remaining plastic fi lm, plastics, or non-recyclable items are then removed manually in the ONP Quality Control booth. The paper is now ready to be baled.

Inspection Station (206)Objects that could cause problems in the container line are removed in this booth manually, such as oversize plastic containers and scrap steel. Everything else proceeds to the Container Feed Hopper, where it is fed to the container line.

Trommel ScreenThe mix of containers is fed through a sloping, rotating screen with 2 inch holes. Any broken glass falls through the holes, and is collected, while complete containers proceed.

Magnetic Separation BeltAt this point, the stream of containers passes under a magnetic, overhead belt. Any ferrous materials, are lifted out of the stream and carried off the line to another storage bunker. Just as on the fi ber line, these bunkers are emptied onto the Baler Feed Conveyor when enough material accumulates to be baled

Air Classifi erA stream of air blows across the line to separate light and heavy materials. The lightweight Plastic and Aluminum items are blown onto a second belt, while the heavy glass containers remain on the fi rst belt.

Container Manual Sorting (100)On the heavy item side, coloured glass is manually thrown into a bin, while clear glass proceeds off the end of the line into another bin. For the lightweight items stream, plastics are manually sorted into three bunkers, #1 – Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET), #2 – High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), and mixed plastics – containing #3 through #7 plastics. Aluminum and residual proceed out of the booth.

Eddy Current SeparatorA rotating magnet inside the end of the belt induces eddy currents in aluminum items, making it magnetic, thus shooting it into a hopper, where it is fed into another bunker. Any residual simply falls off the end of the belt into a waste bin.

BalerFor each separate product, bunkers are emptied onto the Baler Feed Conveyors. As well, uncontaminated commercial cardboard is baled directly. The weight of each bale is recorded, and is then ready to ship.

www.northumberlandcounty.ca1.866.293.8379

wastedept@northumberlandcounty.ca

Inside the Plant

July 2009

www.northumberlandcounty.ca1.866.293.8379

wastedept@northumberlandcounty.ca

Metal Cans, Foil, and Empty Paint Cans

Please Rinse Cans Clean foil, pie plates EMPTY Aerosol Cans and

Paint Cans

Plastic Containers

7 12345

Please Rinse Only items with numbers:

Milk & Juice Cartons, Drink Boxes and Paper Cups

Please Rinse

Glass Bottlesand Jars

Please Rinse Leave Lids On Clear and Coloured Glass

from food and beverage containers

Paper, Boxboard and Cardboard

All Fiber based materials Offi ce Paper Newspaper Boxboard Cardboard Paper Egg Cartons Frozen Juice Containers

NamePolyethylene Terephthalate

(PET)

High Density Polyethylene

(HDPE)

Polyvinyl Chloride(PVC)

Low Density Polyethylene

(LDPE)PolypropyleneOther

Qualities

Clear or coloured, tough; good gas and moisture barrier. Bottles have a raised dot on the base.

Unpigmented are translucent, stiff, good air barrier. Well suited to packaging products with short shelf lives, such as milk. Pigmented are opaque, with good resistance to chemicals. Both don’t crack when bent, slightly waxy

Clear, colourless, with white creases. Bottles have seam on base. Excellent resistance to chemicals; good to weather.

Tough, fl exible, transparent. Smooth, soft to the touch

Transparent, clear or opaque, smooth, semi-rigid. Excellent chemical resistance; strong; high melting point.

Made with resins other than the six above or more than one resin.

Original Use

Pop, water and mouthwash bottles; peanut butter and salad dressing jars; plastic fi lm to cover food on trays and in microwave ovens.

Bottles for milk, juice, water, laundry products and household chemicals; margarine and yogurt tubs; trash and crinkly grocery bags; cereal box liners.

Clear food packaging; shampoo bottles (form industrial sources only).

Flexible lids; squeezable bottles

Ketchup bottles; yogurt and margarine tubs; medicine bottles.

Large reusable water bottles; some citrus juice and ketchup bottles.

Recycled Into...

Fibre for carpets; insulation for coats and sleeping bags; polyester clothes; tote bags; non-food bottles.

Liquid detergent containers, drainage pipe, oil bottles, recycling bins, benches, pens, dog houses, vitamin bottles, fl oor tiles, picnic tables, lumber, mailbox posts, fencing.

Packaging, binders, pipe, decking, pan eling, roadway gutters, mud fl aps, fi lm and sheet, fl ooring, cables, speed bumps, mats.

Shipping envelopes, garbage cans and liners, fl oor tile, furniture, fi lm and sheet, compost bins, paneling, landscape timber, lumber.

Auto battery cases, signal lights, battery cables, brooms and brushes, ice scrapers, oil funnels, landscape borders, bicycle racks, rakes, bins, pallets, sheeting, trays

Custom products, plastic lumber.

Name

Newsprint #8Cardboard/BoxboardPolycoat

Film Plastic – Low Density Polyethylene

(LDPE)

AluminumSteelGlass

QualitiesOff white colour, rough feel, becomes brittle and yellow when exposed to sunlight or air

Heavy, wood based, stiff, durable, resists tearing

Flexible, soft plastic feel, hard to tear

Smooth, soft to the touch

Metal, dull silvery appearance, lightweight, easy to bend, resistant to corrosion, conducts heat

Metal, shiny silvery appearance, heavy, hard, conducts heat

Transparent, strong, hard-wearing, inert, smooth, impervious, brittle.

Original Use

Newspaper, offi ce paper, magazines, envelopes

Packing/storage boxes; shipping materials; cereal, cracker boxes; washing machine detergent boxes; egg cartons

Tetrapak containers, juice boxes, milk cartons

Plastic fi lm, including heat sealing; bread, frozen food and grocery bags.

Beverage cans, aluminum foil containers

CansBeverage bottles, glass jars

Recycled Into...

Paper towels, new newsprint, cardboard, boxboard, offi ce paper, postal paper

Paper products,fi le folders

Table napkins, paper towel, bathroom tissue, fi ller plys for gypsum wallboard, packing material, corrugated cardboard, linerboard, writing papers

Shipping envelopes, garbage cans and liners, fl oor tile, furniture, fi lm and sheet, compost bins, paneling, landscape timber, lumber.

New cans, car parts, other aluminum products – All new aluminum contains recycled aluminum.

All new steel contains recycled steel

Crushed and used as road aggregate and in asphalt, fi berglass insulation, jewelry, new bottles, decorative blocks, landscape material, drainage tile, sand blasting material, beads for refl ective highway paint

ValuePlease see http://www.csr.org/pricesheet/pricesheet.htm for up to date prices.

Recycled Materials

123457

RECY

CLA

BLEW

HEREAPPLICABLE

CEREAL CEREAL CERRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

Grocery

Film Plastics grocery, sandwich,

frozen food, and bread bags

overwrap packaging from items such as toilet paper rolls and diapers

rinsed milk pouches

Shredded ShreddedPaper in a Paper in a separate separate clear bag clear bag

Film Plastic in a Film Plastic in a separate clear bag separate clear bag

CEREALCEREAL

Paper Cup

Everything Else - Loose in a clear/clear Everything Else - Loose in a clear/clear blue bag or blue box! blue bag or blue box!

Paper Cup

Alkyd�Paint�

Latex�Paint� Spray�

Paint�Spray�Paint�

CEREAL CEREAL