What happens to the recyclable material after it is collected?
All the waste collected from households is taken to the Material Recovery Facility at Gateshead. Here, the recyclables are sorted and separated, both by hand and by machine. • Paper and cardboard are sorted separately and both are exported overseas, mainly to South East Asia, to be reprocessed. • Glass is separated into the different colours of green, brown and clear, and is transported to Sydney. Most is reprocessed into new food and beverage containers, but can also become part of bricks, tiles, sandpaper, fibreglass, and reflective glass beads used as road markings. • Plastics are separated into different groupings (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & R), and are baled and sent to China, Sydney or Brisbane • Steel cans are baled and sent to BHP steel in Wollongong for reprocessing. Old steel cans may then be used to manufacture new cars, fridges or washing machines. • Aluminium cans are transported to Sydney where they are melted down and made into ingots. These ingots may then be used to manufac
