Any solid waste/recycling experts here?

[nickwm21]

Glass is one of the few materials that can actually be recycled into the same product. Paper, cardboard, steel, concrete, plastic is all downcycled into a lesser grade version of itself, glass maintains its grade and can be recycled infinitely.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[highangle]

I agree with fastfred. Recycling seems to accomplish very little environmental-wise while giving do gooders a reason to pat themselves on the back and keep consuming. In the Puget Sound we pay a massive fee to truck our garbage across the mountains so we don't have to see or deal with the massive debris piles. We should instead pile it up downtown so we can all see the true consequences of what we consume and try to adapt accordingly.

On Oʻahu, they just incinerate their trash.

In Katmandu, they go with your first recommendation and just pile it up in the streets. When it rains, the trash floats into the river and forms islands buzzing with flies and rafts covered with roaches and camel spiders.
It's worse in Bangladesh. They're downstream, and by the time a river hits the flats and deltas down there it's the color of a 98-degree American shit lagoon. Just thank fuck for monsoon floods cleaning shit up on a regular basis, or you could smell it at Alta.

[grskier]

Look: You don't get into the solid waste business for any reason but money. All solid waste decisions are made by accountants, for money.

This is highly variable across the country.

[uglymoney]

Is glass recycling really alive and well here? My very liberal city just switched from local glass pick up to instead make me bring my glass to one of several glass recycling dumpsters in the city. I believe the reason was that glass recycling is not very efficient and it did not make sense to exert the resources on bi-weekly local pick up.

What is funny is we used to get warning notes if we put our glass in a 10 gallon bucket. 5 gallon only and they would leave it if bigger. Now they want us to use a 10 gallon bucket and wait till it is full before we set it out so they don't have to get out to dump a couple of bottles every single week. The recycle, trash, and yard waste trucks are automated bin grabbers so the only thing they have to get out of the truck for is glass buckets and extra cardboard if it won't fit in the recycle bin.

[highangle]

This is highly variable across the country.

No its not.

[grskier]

Plastic recycling is completely dependent on China and they told the previous admin to FUCK OFF. Biden hasn't done anything to fix this yet, don't know if he'll be able to either. If China is taking plastic, it becomes a question of how many containers are ready to ship, and how much room is on the boat.

Glass, aluminum, iron, steel, copper, concrete, wood and cardboard recycling are all alive and well here in the US.

This is a HUGE part of the current situation.

[highangle]

This is a HUGE part of the current situation.

That, and the amount of styrene and urethane monomers we'll tolerate in our local air and water...

Pretty sure Kentucky could be the Saudi Arabia of solid waste, as well as the proud home of The Creation Museum And Theme Park.

[Skidog]

Glass is one of the few materials that can actually be recycled into the same product. Paper, cardboard, steel, concrete, plastic is all downcycled into a lesser grade version of itself, glass maintains its grade and can be recycled infinitely.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

Problem is is wicked expensive and the market gets smaller all the time in favor or alum, plastic, etc. NYC used to crush it an add it to the pavement. Made for some magical night acid trips, but I think they even stopped doing that.


Sent from my Pixel 4a (5G) using TGR Forums mobile app

[Not DJSapp]

Glass is one of the few materials that can actually be recycled into the same product. Paper, cardboard, steel, concrete, plastic is all downcycled into a lesser grade version of itself, glass maintains its grade and can be recycled infinitely.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

Steel is the single most and best recycled product on the planet bar none. Unless you're going for the ticky tacky argument surrounding low background steel vs. modern steel as a lesser grade version of itself, steel can be reforged without loss or degradation. If you want to adjust the carbon content of what you're recycling, you need to leave it in the blast furnace longer to oxidize the carbon and other impurities and remove them. Just takes shitloads of heat.

[nickwm21]

Steel is the single most and best recycled product on the planet bar none. Unless you're going for the ticky tacky argument surrounding low background steel vs. modern steel as a lesser grade version of itself, steel can be reforged without loss or degradation. If you want to adjust the carbon content of what you're recycling, you need to leave it in the blast furnace longer to oxidize the carbon and other impurities and remove them. Just takes shitloads of heat.

I always thought most steel recycling is downcycling it into rebar. You always see grade 40 bar certs calling it 99% recycled material....

I’m sure youre right. It makes sense that with the right process and enough heat and money you can maintain the grade of the steel...


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[neufox47]

I thought aluminum cans were the best for recycling? That they don’t have to do anything but melt and reform them?

I rarely buy soda but if I do go for the cans.

[Dantheman]

I thought aluminum cans were the best for recycling? That they don’t have to do anything but melt and reform them?

I rarely buy soda but if I do go for the cans.

That's my understanding. Something like 90% less energy used compared to smelting bauxite, infinitely recyclable.

[old_newguy]

Not applicable to home recycling but asphalt concrete pavement is definitely up there in the US. I think it wins on a tonnage basis in the US at least.

[Not DJSapp]

I always thought most steel recycling is downcycling it into rebar. You always see grade 40 bar certs calling it 99% recycled material....

I’m sure youre right. It makes sense that with the right process and enough heat and money you can maintain the grade of the steel...


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

I've purchased plenty of recycled grade 60 bar, pipe, plates and sheet pile. Even the occasional grade 100 bar and wire rope. Frankly it's the only way to get AIS Steel; we recycle twice the tonnage of steel as we bring in new ore, and the gov't contracts that demand American steel means it's gotta come from somewhere.

And yes, recycling Al takes less energy than refining bauxite.

[grskier]

No its not.

Despite what you may have heard, local government ain't in it for the money.

[nickwm21]

Despite what you may have heard, local government ain't in it for the money.

Local government doesn’t matter when it doesn’t make economic sense to the transporter and buyer of the material.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[ötzi]

On Oʻahu, they just incinerate their trash.

I've lived in several places with incinerators. More recently they've been cogeneration operations where they burn trash to generate electric power that they sell. The dirty little secret of these is they like it when there's a lot of plastic in the waste stream because it burns nice and hot. Something has to if the dirty diapers and soggy newspapers are gonna burn at all.

[DougW]

Steel is the single most and best recycled ..... If you want to adjust the carbon content of what you're recycling, you need to leave it in the blast furnace longer to oxidize the carbon and other impurities and remove them. Just takes shitloads of heat.

Picky point but a blast furnace takes in iron ore, coke ( coal) and limestone and produces molten iron that goes into a basic oxygen furnace where the carbon content is reduced and controlled. The scrap also goes into this furance along with alloying metals.

An electric arc furnace just takes in scrap. Those mills produce everything from low end rebar to the high end stainless steel and high alloy steel but the high end is picky about the scrap they use and melt it first before melting it again with the high cost stuff like nickel and chrome.

[Greenstateofmind]

Just watched our trash company dump both cans in one traditional dump truck.

There’s a lot that goes into sorting. Not all plastic recycles. Dirty containers don’t recycle. Then you have sort by material. Some companies have expensive sorting equipment.

I have a friend who is high up in solid waste. She says If certain standards aren’t met, it all goes in the landfill. They have invested in programs to educate and refine but to her it’s a loosing battle.

[Not DJSapp]

Picky point but a blast furnace takes in iron ore, coke ( coal) and limestone and produces molten iron that goes into a basic oxygen furnace where the carbon content is reduced and controlled. The scrap also goes into this furance along with alloying metals.

An electric arc furnace just takes in scrap. Those mills produce everything from low end rebar to the high end stainless steel and high alloy steel but the high end is picky about the scrap they use and melt it first before melting it again with the high cost stuff like nickel and chrome.

Makes sense that they'd be picky about what they're pulling for the scrap pile to recycle into higher end product. Why work harder to clean up scrap when you can pull from a different scrap plie?

[highangle]

Despite what you may have heard, local government ain't in it for the money.

So they all work every day for free, asshole? Or just love of trash? You're getting on my fucking nerves...