What is the process of recycling like in general?
There are three basic steps in the life of your recyclables: manufacturing, consumption and recovery. All three must occur before recycling is complete. Buy efficiently and buy recycled! Recovery occurs when recyclables are separated from discards; putting paper into a recycling bin is the first step in this process. –At Materials Recovery Facilities, or MRFs, recyclables are sorted in preparation for processing. Magnets and air are used to divide up metals and light items. Employees separate out other items (so be kind and rinse your food containers). Mechanical sorters that use optics to identify different kinds of paper and puffs of air to sort it are also now being developed. This entire separation step may seem inefficient, but transportation and collection can be more efficient when separation is postponed; it’s also easier to get people to recycle when they can throw everything together. –At Processing Plants, sorted items are converted into usable material. Plastics get shred
