About Recycling

From Your Curb...To the Materials Recycling Facility

A guide to the collection and processing of Prince George's County's Curbside Recyclables

Recycling Begins at Home...

Order Your Recycle Bin On-line

Recycling Is a Three Step Process:

Collection and Market Preparation
The first step in the recycling process is COLLECTION. You are the source of this material. The recyclables you put in a bin at the curb are collected and taken to the County's Materials Recycling Facility -- better known as a "MRF" (pronounced murf) -- to be SORTED and prepared for market.

Manufacturing
After the recyclables leave the MRF, they are made into new products. Glass, aluminum, and metal are melted down; plastic is chipped into small pellets or flakes; and paper is usually shredded and pulped. These products replace virgin materials in the manufacturing process which in turn reduces the use of natural resouces, conserves energy, and creates less pollution.

Buying Recycled Products
The final phase of recycling is "buying recycled." If we do not purchase the end products of recycling, then the process is not complete. The three arrows of the recycling loop represent the steps of recycling. When you buy products made from recycled materials, you are "closing the loop".

...Then, Your Recyclables Go to the
Prince George's County
Materials Recycling Facility (MRF)

On recycling day, haulers collect recyclables from your curb and take them to the County's "state-of-the-art" MRF located at 1000 Ritchie Road in Capitol Heights. The MRF is where your paper, glass, metals and plastics are sorted. Depending on the materials, recyclables are either crushed (glass), chipped (plastic), or baled (metals and paper) at the MRF and then shipped to manufacturers.

Why Have a MRF?

IT'S EASIER FOR YOU! You don't need to peel labels or separate your recyclables by material type. Your MRF will do this for you. Just rinse your containers, take off the lids, and place them in your recycling bin. Newspapers need to be put in a paper bag or bundled and placed BESIDE your recycling bin on collection day.

IT'S COST EFFECTIVE. Your MRF prepares the recyclables for market by using the best sorting and processing technology available. Your MRF produces contaminant-free materials for industrial use. Manufacturers will pay higher prices for large quantities of clean, compacted material.

MRFs CREATE JOBS and attract quality businesses to the County. Over twenty-five employees are needed to operate the MRF efficiently. The MRF generates large amounts of quality raw material. Businesses desirous of this material will want to locate nearby. These businesses will need a skilled labor force.

MRFs ALLOW FOR MORE RECYCLING. Because of your MRF's large processing capability, the County will be able to collect more materials from the curbside collection program and drop-off sites.

...And Recycling Ends at Home

After recyclables are collected and processed they can be used to make the same product, or they can be made into different products. As recycling programs expand and collect more and different types of materials, we can expect to see a wider variety of products made from recyclables. Here are some examples of what happens to your household recyclables...

NEWSPAPER and other paper can be used to make paper towels, insulation, animal bedding, and writing paper. Recycled newspaper is often used to make newsprint. Mixed paper collected at the Prince George's County's Drop-offs is used in making boxes like those used for cereal, carry-out, and detergents. Producing new paper from recycled paper creates 74% less air pollution and 53% less water pollution than using virgin fibers because it takes less processing.

GLASS can be recycled over and over. A pound of melted recycled glass can be made into a pound of new glass. Before processing, glass is separted by color at the County's MRF. Recycling one ton of glass saves energy equal to burning nine gallons of fuel oil. Plates, window panes, and glass other than jars and bottles contain ingredients that cannot be used in making glass containers. This is why only jars and bottles are accepted in the curbside recycling program.

METALS like aluminum and steel cans are usually made into new cans. New aluminum and steel cans are far less expensive to make using recycled metals instead of mining virgin ores because far less energy is required. Using recycled aluminum instead of bauxite ore requires 95% less energy and water!

PLASTICS are made from petroleum by-products. There are many different types of plastics with different chemical compositions. This means that plastics must be sorted by type before processing. The plastic bottles sorted at the MRF are usually broken down into flakes or pellets. Recycled plastic can be found in such products as new plastic bottles, park benches, winter coat and sleeping bag filling, carpet, tennis shoes, and playground equipment. Your yellow recycling bin is made from recycled plastic!

CLOSING THE LOOP... IT'S UP TO YOU!
Just like the first step in the recycling process, the final phase depends on you. To "close the loop", the new products made with recycled materials need to be purchased. Ideally, the amount of recycled products you buy should equal the amount of recyclables you place at the curb. Buying recycled products will also raise the value of materials collected at your curb and thus reduce the total cost of recycling.